


Let Forever Mean Forever

by fruitsandpeachies



Series: What Makes a Home [2]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Angella is supportive, Cuddling & Snuggling, Domestic, F/F, Finally happy together, Fluff, Glimmer and Bow are confused but they have the right spirit, Kissing, Love, Sappy Lesbians, Sharing a Bed, They love each other, angst in the beginning but everything turns out fine, catradora, catradora kisses, hand holding, starting a life together
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2020-12-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 07:55:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 46,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23967970
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fruitsandpeachies/pseuds/fruitsandpeachies
Summary: After being away for too long, Catra and Adora finally get back to Bright Moon to find that the world had moved on without them. A year had passed and the war had ended while they were gone, so the struggle the two of them face is where to go from there.Catra has a hard time finding comfort in Bright Moon where she'd once come as a conqueror; the one certainty she has in her life now is Adora.There was a chance for them to finally find happiness in their own lives together, but it had to be built from the ground up.
Relationships: Adora & Catra (She-Ra), Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Series: What Makes a Home [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1697389
Comments: 249
Kudos: 1316
Collections: She-Ra





	1. 1- Everything Changes

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome back everyone!! I know you're all as excited about season 5 as I am, so hopefully this will keep us busy until then.  
> Big ol thanks to those who have stuck with me this long, and even joined me on discord to talk about everything!  
> As a thank you gift, I'm posting the first three chapters all at once, and every other Friday after that.  
> So, of course, I hope you enjoy this little sequel as much as I'm enjoying writing it!

The heaviness in Adora’s steps might’ve paced a trench in the garden stone. She was the one most prone to nervous movement, and _nervous_ didn’t even begin to describe the bugs crawling inside of her and eating her insides.

She, Catra and Bow were waiting in the back room of one of Bright Moon’s greenhouses, ears pricked to listen for outside movement. It wasn’t as though Bow had pulled the short straw; this was the best way they’d decided on showing the queen who’d returned.

Hours ago that morning, Adora and Catra came back from an impromptu vacation trapped in the Whispering Woods. It took them four weeks to return, but the outside world had moved on rapidly without them. Over a year had passed in real time, making them late soldiers of a war that was apparently already won.

_So many questions._

“Can you stop pacing?” Catra had her hands tucked under her armpits and ears folded back. “It’s freaking me out.”

“Sorry.”

So much had changed… As Adora looked back at the other girl, her anxious heart filled with warmth. _So much_. There was such a new comfort found in the shape of her, but right then it didn’t help her feet want to pace, pace, pace any less.

It felt like someone was playing drums on her heart, coursing adrenaline with nowhere to go. The little back room they were in wasn’t necessarily a bad place to wait; it was filled to the brim with empty flowerpots, planters, bags of soil, and gardening supplies. It smelled like fresh life and offered at least a bit of comfort.

A small sound came from outside the door, and Bow perked up. “Oh, I think she’s here!” he whispered.

They each got quiet and leaned against the door to listen. Glimmer was out in the main room, waiting for her mother to get the note she’d left.

_Meet me in the north greenhouse_ , the note said. They wanted to get the chance to explain things where they couldn’t be interrupted. There would be a lot to explain.

Windchimes tinkled when the main greenhouse door opened.

“Here you are, Glimmer,” Angella’s voice sounded sweet, and it made Adora nostalgic. “Imagine my surprise when a _note_ joined me for breakfast instead of my daughter.”

They heard Glimmer’s hesitant voice in response. “I know, I, uh... Something came up this morning. And I’ve got someone you might want to see.”

“And here I was thinking you wanted to start our weekly tea parties back up.” The queen let out a light laugh. “Well? What is it?”

It was getting closer and closer to when Adora would finally get to see Queen Angella again. After a month—no, over a year. The queen was the closest thing Adora had to a loving mother, after Shadow Weaver… She was nothing like Shadow Weaver. Nothing at all.

Catra seemed to be feeling a different kind of anxiety. She’d begun trembling, whether that was from fear or just nerves or something else, who knew?

A soft knock on the back room door made all of them jump.

“You can bring them out now, Bow.”

_Why am I so nervous? I shouldn’t be nervous._

Adora let the other girl hang back when she opened the door and stepped out.

There in the center of the greenhouse stood Queen Angella, her hands laced at her front and waiting patiently for her daughter’s surprise. She was as beautiful and ageless as always, like nothing had changed. Perfect skin, massive glowing wings folded neat against her back.

Angella’s eyes shifted to Adora, and for a second—only a second—her calm face displayed many emotions. Looking at her the girl before her, the sword still on her back. Like she was trying to decide exactly what to feel. Then it settled on disbelief.

“Adora,” she marveled, unclasping her hands.

_Don’t cry, don’t cry._ Adora stepped closer and dipped into an uncomfortable bow. “Your majesty.” _What are you doing, don’t act stupid._ “I’m really sorry that I—”

Suddenly, she was swept up into a hug tighter than even Glimmer’s. The scent of lavender and magic overwhelming her senses, immortal arms pinning her own against her sides. Breathing wasn’t an option, but Adora didn’t care.

Her resolve not to cry was broken almost immediately.

“I didn’t—” Adora began shaking, and the guilt of everything finally rose back to the surface. “I didn’t mean to abandon Bright Moon. I wasn’t—”

Guilt, guilt for leaving them, thinking she was dead, thinking they were _alone_. She abandoned them. _Guilt, guilt, guilt. My fault._

“ _I’m sorry_.” She had her eyes pressed closed against the soft material of the cape. _Showing weakness, don’t—_

“Don’t be silly,” Angella whispered, smoothing Adora’s hair down with a gentle hand. The way a mother might. “You’re back home where you belong now. Everything will be okay.”

_The way a mother might._

The pain in Adora’s chest waned just a bit, and she took a step back to wipe her face off. She still hadn’t changed clothes, so the fabric of her sleeves were already crusted with dried tears and snot. More couldn’t hurt it.

“My, look at you.” Angella’s own eyes nearly looked like they were shining, too. She took Adora’s arms up in her hands and looked her over. “You’re skin and bones, darling. And these injuries, heavens. I’m not as verse as Castaspella, but I believe I sense some time magic on you.”

As astute as always. It might’ve been easy to forget all of the queen’s dealing with magic, so Adora wasn’t necessarily surprised that she’d sensed the time magic. That, and they clearly hadn’t aged a whole year.

How could Adora even start the story? When they shared it with Bow and Glimmer, it was a version spoke to friends on what happened and how they returned. For some reason, it felt different sharing the story with the queen of the rebellion she’d abandoned.

“We’ve much to discuss, I’m sure,” Angella said softly. She looked up at her daughter, who was standing a ways off. “Glimmer, you said _‘they’_ earlier. Who else are you referring to?”

_Oh boy_.

Here it goes.

All of this responsibility fell back on Adora, and while she knew in her heart what was right and what deserved to happen, it wasn’t going to be easy in the slightest.

“Okay.” Adora tried not to look distraught. “We met here because we didn’t want the guards called, but, um.” She was _very_ close to freaking out even more than she already was. “I brought someone with me. And I _don’t_ want anyone trying to blast her away, either.” Her pointed gaze ran to Glimmer, who crossed her arms.

Nothing else needed to be said, apparently.

Out from the safety of the back room came Catra. She held herself small, fists balled at her sides. Even the expression on her face was not a usual one, but instead a mixture of shame and dread, covered up with attempted composure. This wasn’t the girl who’d last seen Bright Moon as a conqueror.

Before anyone could throw around more accusations, Adora stepped defensively to Catra’s side. “I didn’t get kidnapped, or brainwashed or anything, I promise. And our story is kind of long, but…” She looked at her partner, and just sharing a look seemed to calm her slightly. “Catra was with me the entire time.”

What else could she say without spilling the entire story, right then and there?

Queen Angella held her eyes on Catra for a long minute, staring so fiercely it was almost threatening. Almost, but not quite.

Then she let out a deep sigh. “We indeed have a lot to talk about.” Her brows seemed to knit when she saw all of the horrible burn scars covering Catra’s face and neck (without even knowing about the worse wound). “Perhaps in the infirmary.”

“Wait, what?” Glimmer did a bit of a double take and winced at Adora before facing her mom. “You’re not going to call for the guards? It’s _Catr—”_

“ _Daughter._ ” Angella’s wings flicked out. It was a brief but genuinely scary body language that served as a warning. “I’m no fool, nor am I a monster. We deal with problems as they come.”

“But—"

“ _You two.”_

Bow and Glimmer stood straight, trying not to look over at the third girl because shame was written all over their faces for questioning why Catra hasn’t been dragged away yet. Unfortunately, Adora understood.

_It still hurts._

“Will you please get brunch ready in the smaller dining quarters? It doesn’t look like they’ve eaten in moons.” Angella half-turned to the door. “And you girls, please come with me. We’ll see to it that you get the medical attention you need.”

Angella’s mood may have shifted downwards slightly upon noticing Catra, but her actions were still soft. She didn’t appear to be overly worried of a Horde soldier being inside Bright Moon. That must’ve been because the war was over…

Something that Adora still couldn’t believe. It might take her some time to adjust, but maybe eventually things will get better? Will _feel_ better? And Catra…

After Glimmer and Bow hugged her goodbye (almost for too long) they left. Then the other three left the greenhouse.

As they walked, Adora wanted _so badly_ to hold onto Catra’s hand, for both of their sakes. Catra seemed so uncomfortable, and though she’d said she was prepared for this, it was clear she was trying to be brave. Was it for Adora’s sake? For her own?

The unsettling feeling of an unknown future weighed heavily on Adora’s shoulders. Only time would tell the outcome.

It was good fortune that Catra and Adora were escorted to the infirmary by the Queen of Bright Moon herself. She’d instructed guards to completely clear the path to the infirmary, and for a private room to be waiting for them. As promised, the three of them were completely alone as they walked.

Catra began limping halfway through. The cold must’ve been brutal on her old wound; even Adora felt the effects of being out in the snow for as long as they were. Her cheeks, nose and ears felt both numb and tingling painful at the same time. _Probably not a good thing,_ she thought.

In their portion of the medical wing, there was only one healer permitted, and when she came in, her eyes widened the size of dinner plates.

“You understand why we must keep this to ourselves for now,” Angella told the doctor firmly, and eased the girls onto separate beds in their private room. “Please do not share this information until we choose to announce it.”

The doctor shook her surprise and curtsied. “Yes, your highness.”

Without waiting further, they got to work. It felt weird putting her sword down without a second thought, but it came easily.

Angella waiting outside their room while Adora and Catra (begrudgingly) stripped to their underclothes. In the bright lighting of the infirmary, Adora was absolutely horrified to notice how _visible_ the markings they’d given each other last night were.

_How many people are going to notice this?? I’d better wear turtlenecks around the others…_

Catra looked like she would rather be dead a thousand times over than to be touched by a stranger. Every time the healer lifted one of her limbs to examine, she’d hiss and try swatting her away.

“Could be worse.” The healer tilted Adora’s head upwards to feel around at her neck.

When her bruises were pressed, Adora sucked in a breath. _This lady has to notice. There are bite marks all over my chest and neck. There is no way she doesn’t know. Maybe I should say something_.

She kept her voice low so Catra didn’t hear. “Hey don’t tell anyone, okay?” Adora whispered to the healer.

The healer, helping her off the bed to stand on the scale, shook her head. “Nothing to tell, Princess. You must have been attacked by some sort of animal.”

Unfortunately, Catra must’ve heard, because she let out a snort she tried to be holding. “Yeah, something like that.”

“Catra, if you don’t shut your mouth, I’m going to give the healer more work to do.”

They both began snorting, which turned into full-out laughter. It was freeing; Adora wanted to bottle the sunshine in her chest and keep it forever. To be able to laugh with the girl she loves in her home? Why couldn’t they stay like this?

When the basic vitals were taken from the girls, their healer laid Catra back and began examining all of the burn wounds in more depth.

Despite how staggering these wounds were, Adora was embarrassed to admit she forgot about them easily. Her partner was so strong and hated being overly cared for, so she had to respect her wishes. It’d been several weeks since she’d received them, anyway.

The healer pulled the lower edge of Catra’s undershirt upwards. “Would you please take your underclothes off for me so I can examine this better?”

“No!” Catra spat, yanking her shirt back down. “You already stripped me to my underwear, jeez.”

“She’s a healer, Catra. It’s not like she’s never seen someone naked before.”

“I’m _not_ stripping in here.”

The doctor blinked. “I’ve got anesthesia if you’d like.”

“Ugh, _fine_. God dammit.” The words were disgruntle, but Catra didn’t seem like she wanted to fight too badly. She yanked her shirt off and threw it behind her (conveniently hitting Adora in the face), and then her undershorts. “My dignity is already gone anyways. What’s a pair of underwear to me now?”

It was really hard for Adora not to laugh again. She pitied Catra having to mourn her self-respect, but she was being such a child.

The healer had Catra lay back down and began examining.

“ _Stars_ …” Her word was soft. “These burn wounds are astonishing. I’m amazed that your thigh is healing as well as it is, without any previous medical care. It must have been a long several months for you.”

“Four weeks, actually.” Catra grit her teeth when the burn was touched.

The nurse made a face and clearly was trying not to ask questions.

This was a good thing. Honestly, she could’ve asked so many questions. About the marks all over their bodies, the scars. And the more obvious questions. They were fortunate she was probably under strict command not to ask questions, because there were _a lot_ she could’ve asked.

The process took too long. Too uncomfortably long.

Adora was seriously considering running; she hadn’t been around more than Catra in a month and it was hard being stuck on someone _else’s_ time. The few minutes turned into a good hour of poking and prodding. Some salve to their frostbite.

Luckily, after a while, something interrupted.

There was a knock on the door, followed by the queen stepping in. “How is it coming along in here?”

Quickly and discreetly, the healer whipped out gowns and covered the girl’s fronts with them to avoid the queen seeing anything she wouldn’t want to.

_So she does know._ Adora was mortified, but grateful that the nurse had common sense enough to do what she did. There would be absolutely nothing more horrifying than the queen herself seeing the nail marks running down her hips.

“Nothing too terrible to report, fortunately.” There was a chipper, but respectful tone to the healer’s voice. “They’re malnourished and underweight. Some fresh frostbite, too, but nothing else. The burn scars appear to be healing wonderfully, and with some regular stretches, this young lady should be good to go in no time.”

Catra grimaced at the term “young lady,” but didn’t say anything rude in the queen’s presence.

Angella looked relieved. Her eyes glistened happily seeing Adora again, but when she looked at the other girl, the expression shifted. “Wonderful.”

In her arms were clothes that she carefully handed to each of the gowned girls.

“I’ll have someone take your belongings to your room, Adora. And as for these clothes, they may not be perfectly your sizes, but we can get you something more decent tomorrow.”

_Tomorrow_. The thought of waking up tomorrow morning having Catra with her back home was…unbelievable. So much so that she didn’t even care that her sword was being taken from her.

After dressing (Catra looked _adorable_ in her blouse and loose satin pants), they silently followed the queen down the halls to the dining quarters.

This all felt so weird. Catra so far wasn’t being treated as a criminal, and it was completely different than anything Adora would’ve expected. She was skeptical that things were going “well,” though. Any second she expected guards to come rushing in and handcuffing Catra and taking her away for the many war crimes she’d committed.

But no. Catra walked free, close next to Adora, as they continued. _For now._ Things were going to change, and she had no way of preparing herself.

For the first time that day, Adora wondered where Catra’s headpiece went. She hadn’t seen her take it from the property… It didn’t really matter, she supposed. That was then. This is now.

The private dining quarters were definitely more comfortable than the massive dining hall that’s usually shared for meals. It had a tall ceiling and hanging chandeliers, but was otherwise suited for a crowd of no more than a dozen. The table had stocked a meal that made Adora’s mouth water.

Best yet, her friends were already there at the table.

When they entered, Glimmer shot up and immediately clung to Adora’s arm. “Adora!! Are you okay? What did the healer have to say?”

Ignoring Catra’s eye roll, Adora tried comforting her friend. “I’m fine, Glimmer. We just…” _Need some time to process things._ “We just need to eat.”

After living off of fruit and fish, the full table of _real_ food was almost intimidating. Shepheard’s pie, honey cakes, eggs baked into the center of potatoes. Everything sizzling fresh from the oven, spiced and buttered—it was hard not just shoving everything immediately into her mouth.

While Adora started immediately, Catra sat in her chair and stared at her folded hands.

“It might not be a comfortable time for you,” Angella sat at the empty seat next to Bow (who was stuffing his face), “but I think it would be best to have this discussion with food as a mediator. Adora.”

Adora, who was busy picking a piece of stray food from the front of her shirt, looked up. “Huh?”

“You’ve brought a senior officer of the Horde into our castle grounds and did not come to me straight away. I’m going to assume you have a good explanation for this.”

The accusatory tone of the queen’s voice made Adora sink. She wiped her hands on the nearest napkin and tried to format the speech in her head to make the best sense. “I do have an explanation. And maybe I should’ve gone to you first. I thought you were just going to throw Catra in a dungeon.”

“I look forward to hearing why I _shouldn’t_.”

_Yeah, okay. That’s fair._

Here goes nothing.

For the third time that day, Adora shared their story. Again, leaving out choice details. Every time the events were recounted, they sounded less and less plausible. Maybe it was the repetition that number her mind to it all, or maybe because it really did sound insane.

Bow and Glimmer, eating through it, reacted the same way they did before, gasping at all the right times, sharing dramatic looks. They were very supportive, but it was hard really getting a laugh from their antics because of how _nervous_ she was.

When the story was over, Angella folded her fingers underneath her chin. She didn’t say anything for a few seconds, which clearly made everyone else nervous, too.

Catra, who still wasn’t eating, had wrapped her tail around Adora’s leg underneath the table. _She’s scared_ , Adora knew, but she didn’t know how to comfort her. Of course. This was a trial and Angella was deciding her fate.

When the queen across from them finally spoke, it was with careful words. “Under normal circumstances, my answer would be different, but these are not normal circumstances. I would be more comfortable with making a decision with the support of the council.”

Council?

“Ugh, but _mom_.” Glimmer dragged her hands down her face. “The council takes _so long_.”

Adora was about to ask what this was, but Angella kept talking.

“There are no rebellion leaders anymore, Glimmer. What happens will affect the entire city—potentially the entire world. I must get outside opinions before anything is set.”

“But they could be in prison for _days.”_

“Prison?” Adora unintentionally scooted her chair backwards. “We’re going to prison??”

“No, not you.” Bow reached over at patted his friend’s hand. “Just Catra for now.”

Was that supposed to be comforting?? _This is all wrong_. Adora put her arm across Catra’s chest and trying not to get too upset. “Look, I get it, but is there any other way to get this sorted out other than putting Catra in a dungeon forever?”

“Oh it’s not really a dungeon, just the spare room.”

“ _Glimmer.”_

“—Am I allowed to say anything?”

The loud voices in the room quieted down when the only silent one spoke up.

Catra sat forwards. “If I’m the one getting locked up, at least let me say something.”

“Catra—”

“Don’t,” she interjected, holding up her hand. It was clear her words were meant to be bold and strong, spoken by a woman who knew what she wanted and was unafraid of taking this responsibility. But her eyes told Adora a different version of the story.

_What was she going to say? Was she going to incriminate herself? Run away?_

At that point, just about anything was possible. Tension lit up the room like static electricity. Everyone stared, and getting the chance of really seeing everyone together like this, Adora knew how strange of a situation they were in.

_Say something, say something._

Catra flattened her ears back just a little under their gazes. “What an audience,” she tried joking, but it fell dry. “No? Okay. There’s just no point in arguing. I’m not going to fight.” Her eyes flicked over to Adora for just a second. The colors were stormy, but brave. “Nothing I can say would reverse the things I’ve done, so I won’t try. Whatever punishment you have, I’ll take it.”

Wait—

Panic flooded Adora’s chest so fast she shot up and nearly threw the chair backwards. “No, she doesn’t mean that, she—"

“Adora, stop, okay? We talked about this.”

_Yeah they did, but this wasn’t…how Adora imagined it going_. She thought Catra would try to defend herself at least a little, but she’s just willingly handing herself over? No, this wasn’t right.

It wasn’t going to happen like this.

“Queen Angella,” Adora knew her limbs were going numb, and it was a sign she might’ve been panicking too much, “I know that we were only there for four weeks, but so much has changed since then. You don’t know the whole story.”

“I thought you just told us the whole story?” Bow rubbed his forehead. “Was I not paying good enough attention…?”

“I—”

Glimmer leaned over the table towards her other friend. “And you’re sure you _haven’t_ been brainwashed?”

“ _Enough_.” Queen Angella stood, towering over them. The word was firm and loud, but not unkind. “I’ll say it again: I’m no fool. The council exists to make decisions like these, so there’s no use in chittering about it, you two.”

Glimmer and Bow huffed, looking at each other and up again at their third friend.

The only person who didn’t seem visibly terrified was Catra. Despite the body language of her swishing tail and flat ears, she had her jaw set with a determination it hadn’t before. Sure, she might’ve been worried, but this was what they’d talked about for the last week or two of their stay in the Woods.

Of course Catra knew what she was doing; she wasn’t stupid.

The queen and ex-Horde soldier stared at each other.

“Princess Scorpia had good things to say about you, Catra.” Angella sat back down, and the tension eased just a bit. “Strong. Intelligent. Fiercely loyal.”

Catra’s split eyes turned down into her lap and a flush of remorse hit her. Maybe she hadn’t had time to properly think about her old companions, because it seemed to affect her more than it might’ve. Something clearly happened between her and the old force captain.

“The council is composed of two dozen leaders, elders and princesses from every corner of Etheria that have come together in the time following the war’s end. The Rebellion was full of soldiers, but when the Horde fell—” Catra winced at the queen’s words. “—we needed _more_ than just that.”

More than soldiers… This much was true. Especially for a handful of young adults that were talented but in no way able to decide the world’s fate.

Angella pushed a plate of steaming meat towards Catra to encourage her to eat. “The trial will probably only last two days—”

“—That’s _so long_ —” Glimmer groaned.

“—but Glimmer’s aunt Castaspella knows several good truth spells.”

_Ooh._

The truth spells. Even though Adora had never seen any done in person, she’s heard about their potency and their ability to drag the truth from anyone. She felt…kind of dumb for not thinking about it.

It was impossible for Catra to lie to the council under the spell. But… So much else could go wrong?

_Yes,_ she’d been a commanding officer in the Horde. _Yes,_ she tried to take down Bright Moon and the princesses multiple times. _Yes_ , she was probably the most dangerous person in Etheria asides from maybe Hordak.

How was she going to escape that??

Thinking all that did not help Adora’s anxiety at all. Her breathing was speeding up, and she had no way of stopping it. Even her vision was getting blurry.

_They’re going to take her away from me._

_I did this to her. I brought her right into the arms of her captors._

_What could Adora possibly say to make them know the Catra that_ she _knew??_

“Oh no, Adora.”

Without much warning, both of her best friends stood up from their plates and went around to the other side of the table to wrap their arms around her.

“It’s okay.” Bow smushed his cheek against her crusty hair. “Please don’t cry.”

When Glimmer hugged, it felt like she was breaking Adora’s emaciated bones. “Don’t cry. We’ve waited so long to have you back. We should be _happy!_ I mean, just yesterday we… _”_

“No, no.” The white-hot pain in Adora’s chest was getting too much to handle. This made her senses in horrible overdrive, like her skin was covered in needles. She gentle pried her friends off her, stood up from the table, and backed up against the wall. “This is wrong. Everything is wrong. It’s not about _me_ , it’s—”

“Hey, _stop it_.”

Adora’s fast breathing was cut off and she focused her vision to see Catra standing. _These three people in front of her. They were her family. But how was this fair?_ Did she make a mistake in coming back? How could she even think like that?

Although she was careful not to display too much intimacy in front of the others, Catra ignored all the eyes on her and took one step closer. Into Adora’s panic bubble.

“How many times have I told you how annoying it is for you to be worried about me all the time?” she asked.

_That’s an unfair question._ “…A lot.”

“And how many times have you asked me if I want to come back to Bright Moon with you?”

All of the others—Bow, Glimmer, and Angella—seemed a bit wordless at the interaction, but it helped pretending they weren’t there watching them.

Adora’s stomach rolled, and she began wondering if eating so much rich food was a good idea. She had to really fight the urge to cling onto Catra. “…I asked you a lot.”

“And what was my answer?”

For just a second, Adora humored herself by thinking what would happen if she actually shared aloud how those conversations would go. _Kissing and all._ Why can’t they just skip all this nonsense and go back to being happy?

She knew she should have more confidence. It was hard, though.

Adora let out a sigh and did her best to force some of the anxiety down out. “This sucks.”

“Worst that’ll happen is I’ll be imprisoned forever and you can visit me on weekends.”

“ _That’s not funny.”_

Catra, rolling her eyes, actually looked over to Bow and talked to him for the first time. “Are all princesses this neurotic?”

“Uh.” Bow was obviously startled at being spoken to. Then he laughed nervously. “I mean, sometimes? Glimmer does this thing when she’s upset—”

“ _Bow!!_ ”

“Okay, is everyone done with brunch?” A clap to attention from Queen Angella made everyone reluctantly stop what they were doing. “There’s clearly going to be a lot to do today, and I regret we can’t spend more time freely like this.”

Panic time again. Quick as lighting, Adora snatched Catra’s sleeve. “But—”

She didn’t know the exact order of what happened next. She knew her grip dropped, and she saw the look in Catra’s eyes meant just for her. A scared kind of comfort, like she was worried about Adora more than she was herself. Glimmer and Bow had taken up Adora’s side again, too, and they all watched as guards came into their dining quarters.

The guards locked Catra’s wrists in behind her with circlets of metal and turn her away.

At the last second, Adora lunged forward and grabbed onto one of Catra’s cuffed hands. The difference in temperature was almost startling, with hers being hot and sweaty, and the other girl’s…as cold as ice, like all the blood had drained from her limbs.

They only got one chance to look back and lock eyes.

“See you soon, princess.”

And then their hands slipped away, Catra’s fingertips brushing against her palm. The feeling of nails and letting go linger long after the door closed behind.

_They took her away._

_She’s gone, they took her._

The darkness returned.

Immediate terror slammed back up into Adora’s throat, nearly blinding her.

When Angella left, Bow and Glimmer were still there by her side. Still worried from her previous reaction, they both seemed a little hesitant to touch her again.

“It’ll be okay, Adora,” Glimmer leaned her shoulder onto her. “You’ll feel better once you take a shower and we talk about it all.”

“Talk about it?” All Adora wanted to do was to slide down the wall and curl up into a fetal position. “I don’t… I don’t want to talk about it.”

_I need to stop, I have to calm down_. They were right; she’d got home in one piece, this should be a celebration. She’d known that bringing Catra to Bright Moon would be something like this, but still. Having it happen was terrifying, and she didn’t know how to properly deal without her.

They had been trapped together for a whole month and found such a comfort in each other’s arms. How could she be without her rock? What if she was going to be imprisoned?? Sure, Catra claimed to know what she was doing when she agreed to come back with her, but did she _really_ know?

This freak-out must have been confusing to her friends. They’d gone a whole year without seeing her. Of course they wanted Catra to be thrown in the dungeon. They didn’t _know_.

They didn’t know how close Adora and Catra became. How much they relied on each other.

This was a good thing, Adora decided. She took a few shaking breaths. For now, no one should know about their relationship, whatever it was.

_We can get through this._ They’ve been through worse together. They made it that far.

“Let’s go back to my room, okay?” Adora took both of their hands. “This is a lot to take in at once.”

_It must’ve been a lot for them, too_. They were being so patient with her. She really couldn’t have asked for better friends. This all was just so much. She wasn’t prepared.

Back in Adora’s room, Swift Wind had made himself comfortable on a big rug in the center of the floor. When his three friends came back in, he immediately stood.

“Oh good,” he nickered, headbutting Adora and almost accidentally goring her with his horn. “You were gone for so long. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t run away again.”

They all waited for her…for a year. It was hard for her to be so happy to be back and upset at the same time.

Adora took her companion’s face in her hands. “Thanks for waiting for me, Swift Wind. I won’t go anywhere.”

“Do you have another party you’re going to today?” Glimmer asked, sitting cross-legged on a chair.

“Ooh, a party?” Talking about something lighthearted made Adora feel just a little better. “I didn’t know you were much of a partier.”

For some reason, this made Bow and Glimmer snort behind their hands. They raised their eyebrows at the steed, almost as if challenging, _Yeah, Swift Wind._ If the steed had been more in-tune to social cues, he might’ve reacted differently, but all he did was whinny happily.

“I’m doing birthday parties now!”

Birthday parties? Like the disaster they avoided at Frosta’s birthday, when the kid narrowly avoided getting a stick for a present? While Bow and Glimmer collapsed against each other snorting and laughing, Adora felt genuinely happy that her friend found something that made himself happy.

She noted the beads braided into his hair had a certain Perfuma style and wondered when she was going to see the other princesses. “I’m proud of you for doing that,” she told him, crossing her arms. “Staying busy. Are you enjoying it?”

“Oh yeah. Kids are great! Last week, one stuck a lollipop in my tail, and it took _days_ to get it out.”

“Oh, that’s…fun.” Adora tried not to make a face. “You’re going to one now?”

“Yup! I’ll be back in a few hours.” Trotting happily on his hooves, Swift Wind got up onto the balcony and looked back at them before spreading his wings. “Don’t go leaving without me again, okay?”

“…O-Okay.”

The beat of his wings as he left brought the reminder of guilt back into Adora’s stomach. _Don’t leave without me._ The days leading up to the escape were filled with impatience and excitement, but Adora felt like an idiot for not knowing all the difficult parts they’d run into.

_I only need to deal with this uncertainty for a few more days, then I’ll know what to do._ Whether that means Catra will be thrown into the dungeons of the Ice Kingdom or not.

No, she should be happy. Adora should be happy. She had her friends, and she…wished she had Catra, too. _When did I become so selfish?_ Oh, how her chest ached.

“This feels so weird having you back!”

Adora nearly jumped straight out of her skin. _Right, there are other people here_. Becoming a hermit wasn’t a good look for her.

“It does feel weird,” she replied honestly, and looked back at her friends. They…looked so grown up. “I never thought you’d grow your hair out longer than it was, Glimmer. It looks good.”

Glimmer sheepishly fluffed the edges, which just reached her shoulders. “Thanks. I haven’t cut it since you disappeared. Stress, you know.” Her laugh fell very flat.

_Gods, this was going to be awkward, wasn’t it?_

How could this be so hard? They were her best friends, and they had been for _years._ The only thing that had really changed between them was—No, that wasn’t the right mindset. The only one who _hadn’t_ changed was Adora. But…everything had changed.

She took a deep breath, shoving the nagging feeling down, and sat on her bed. “I’m sorry, guys. I really need to apologize. Nothing feels…right anymore.”

“You don’t need to apologize.” Bow’s voice was gentle. He sat with Glimmer on the bed, too, and they had the canopy overhead to hold the sound. “It wasn’t your fault. Magic is crazy sometimes.”

“Yeah, but I left you during the battle. If I hadn’t—”

“ _Adora_. You were saving someone’s life. And you succeeded. Nothing that happened was your fault, and no one blames you for leaving.”

“But the war…”

“—is _over_. Adora.” Glimmer put her arm around Adora’s shoulders and could probably feel her shaking. “It’s been over a year since we’ve seen you last. All anyone feels is _relief_ that you’re okay.”

_Relief?_ Is that what she should be feeling? Yeah, probably.

This was going to be harder on her than she wanted to admit. They didn’t understand exactly what she and Catra have been through, but she wasn’t ready to exactly say what. For now, she had to live with them not knowing. That had to be okay with her.

It had to be.

Adora bent her head against Glimmer’s shoulder and immediately felt both of her friend’s arms wrap tight around her. “I’ve missed you guys so much.” One hand gripped Bow’s shirt and the other Glimmer’s. “Really. I never meant to make you worry like that.”

Bow’s scraggly chin hair scratched her forearm. “ _Worry_ is one word for it. So much has happened since you’ve been gone.”

“Okay, then.” Adora gave them one last squeeze before scooting back in bed and pulling her familiar blanket over her lap. “We’ve got a few days, might as well catch up.”

_This had to be okay with her_.

Bright Moon had been home for years. This is where her family was, her room, her favorite foods. She’d been a thousand years in the past and left them behind, but now she’s back…

Why is there such a hole in her heart still?


	2. Weathering the Storm

Time meant very little, which wasn’t surprising. That evening went by both achingly slow and too fast to comprehend, landing Adora alone in her bedroom, long past the others went to bed. The dark was much too dark. Where’re the sounds of the crickets? The storms? Why did she _miss_ it?

There was a certain type of regret she felt pulling weights through her bones. It felt toxic: a horrible combination of feeling happy to be back and feeling _ridiculously_ guilt for being happy. Catra was somewhere else, probably being guarded by a hundred soldiers ready to show her the kind of pain they’ve felt.

Adora rolled onto her side, staring at the other side of her bed where she wished Catra was right then. Had it really only been a few weeks since she’d last slept by herself? Why was it so _hard_ all of a sudden?

When sleep finally took her, it only held her for an hour at a time, only to wake up gasping between. Clutching her chest. Throat closing with tears. _Missing Catra._

Around the sixth time this happened, she was at her sink gulping down water when a knock on the door startled her.

“Come in.” Her voice was louder than a shock wave through the empty night.

The door opened. Bow and Glimmer, wearing pajamas and looking like they might not have slept soundly either, dragged themselves in. In their arms were bundles of sleeping bags.

“Look. I was right,” Glimmer yawned, tossing her cot onto the floor next to Adora’s bed. “She’s awake.”

Bow put his bag down, too. “Yeah. Mind if we crash here tonight, Adora?”

Did she mind? The way of their kindness, like they’d done it a thousand times before, like it came natural. There the shame was, squirming inside of her like it had been since coming back.

Adora must have looked like a wreck, because she certainly felt like one. “Not at all.” She hoped she sounded as grateful as she felt. Her eyes were nearly crusted shut from all the drainage and crying. “Just like old times.”

Without saying anything else, the three of them crawled under their designated covers. A hand took her own before falling completely asleep.

Her sleep wasn’t continuous, even after having company. It was wracked with nightmares and periodic cold-sweat wakeups. By the time Adora gave up trying to get more rest, the light was almost up.

Every inch of her body felt like it was collapsing.

And her stomach was killing her. All that food yesterday after a stomach was shrunken from fruit was a bad idea. Everything just…felt _bad_.

Adora rolled out of bed and nearly stepped onto the feet of a sleeping bag. Quiet snores floated from the cots on the floor as Glimmer and Bow slept on. The dark circles that ringed their eyes suggested maybe they didn’t have a peaceful night, either.

“I’ll be back,” Adora promised in a whisper before shrugging on a robe and exiting.

For a minute, she wondered if it was a bad idea to wander the halls before the news of her arrival had really gotten out. Any guards that saw her would surely tell…

The first two she ran into certainly did double takes.

“I’d like to visit the queen.” Adora, despite feeling small, did her best to look intimidating. She looked at the guarded door. “Is she in?”

One guard looked over hesitantly to the other. Even though most of her face was covered, a dimple in her chin exposed concern.

“Um, yes. But you’re—”

“I know. Can I see her?”

They stepped aside, one opening the leftmost door for Adora to slip past.

In the very early of the morning, Bright Moon’s throne room was an echoing chamber that flooded with the color of dawn. Moonrise was always so beautiful on their planet. And their queen, throne bathing in this light, looked almost like a runestone herself.

Very tall, very still.

Angella spent time in her throne room to think, and at this moment her perfect brows were on the verge of making concerned wrinkles on her forehead. Seeing a flawless, immortal being like this just served to make everything feel even more unsettling.

“Queen Angella.” Adora walked up to the base of the throne and, not knowing exactly how else to present herself, sat down onto her knees.

The queen lifted her chin off of the hand it was resting on and smiled down fondly at the girl. “Good morning, Adora. You know that you don’t have to kneel in front of me.”

 _She knew_ , but nothing else quite felt right. “If you’ve got time, I’d like to speak with you.” Maybe she should’ve worn better clothes than a robe over pajamas. “Please.”

Angella got off her throne and walked the few floating steps down to where Adora was to help her up. “I don’t know if I’ll have the answers you really want right now, but I’m happy to talk with you. Perhaps some fresh air, yes?”

 _So nice_. As always. Nothing less was to be expected.

Graciously, Adora accepted and followed the queen of Bright Moon out the side of the throne room, pausing only to speak with the guards before leading them both to her private balcony.

The view over Bright Moon was breathtaking, as one would expect.

Light of the early morning cast heavy shadows across the city. Shapes from each tall building stretched from the western side to the eastern side, tickling the edges of the water. It was in such immaculate detail, twinkling against the frost and snow of winter.

Despite the season, Adora didn’t feel cold. It must’ve been the magic barrier around the castle, and why simple curtains were good enough to divide her own room from the frozen.

With her hands on the edge of the balcony, Angella took a deep breath. “I love coming out here, seeing the progress of the city. How far we’ve come.”

_How far…_

Adora went up to stand next to her. She was much shorter than the queen and could easily rest her elbows on the edge. The view of the city was almost too much to take in at once. Hardly anyone was out, either.

At the very edge of the town, farthest away from the moonstone, looked to be a big section in the middle of construction. The construction reached into the portion of the Whispering Woods, as well.

“Have Glimmer and Bow told you about our projects?”

Adora squinted far down below at a tall wall erect between the construction and the actual city. “Yeah, they did.”

~~

_“Never in a million years did we think we’d win the war this way.” Glimmer hung upside-down on the bay window seat. “I mean, they practically lost it for themselves. Why did Hordak self-sabotage himself that badly? He should’ve known they’d lose.”_

_“Well without She-Ra, we definitely had to think a little different than we have been. All of those stories you told us about Hordak and Shadow Weaver being so horrible to you as children…” The look on Bow’s face was both embarrassed and shocked, like he wished he would’ve made the connection before. “I mean, we believed you, but seeing it firsthand like that?”_

_Everything about this discussion was making Adora nauseous, but she wanted to know. She had to know how it ended. Where they were._

_She pulled her knees tight up to her chest. “…When did you first know we were winning?”_

_“Probably like the third or fourth time we found Horde cadets in the middle of the Whispering Woods. They didn’t want to talk at first, but when they did…”_

_“Hordak and Shadow Weaver apparently thought that without She-Ra, we were defenseless. That if they threw us off, they could take us out in one go.”_

Sounds about like them, _Adora thought._

_Glimmer picked a piece of lint from her sock and snorted. “They definitely didn’t count on us saving all the people they thought they’d sent to die in the Woods.”_

_“Maybe they were trying to send a message?”_

_“It doesn’t matter now. What matters is we saved each one of them and they turned against the Horde. They alienated their own people. The more often they failed, the angrier and more reckless they got.”_

_That comment made Adora think ashamedly of the way Catra used to fight as commander before getting smarter about things. When you corner an animal, they lash out but become clumsy._

_That must’ve been what the Horde did. They became clumsy, blinded by rage. And without Catra, they were doomed to fail._

_Bow saw how uncomfortable Adora was getting, but she motioned him to finish._

_“All we had to do was fake a raid, separate the soldiers from the officers. The second Entrapta got ahold of Hordak, it was all over. It’s a good thing she’s on our side again.” He shook his head. “She’s got a way with machinery I could only_ dream _of. Even without the First One’s tech working…”_

_Of course. If she was being honest, Adora believed that Entrapta could single-handedly decide which way a war could turn. It must have been incredible watching the progress of all that._

_“What happened to Hordak and Shadow Weaver?”_

_Glimmer nearly did a double-take. “I forget how long you’ve been gone._ Everybody _knows.”_

_“Hordak was stripped of all his machinery and tossed into a cell deep below the Kingdom of Snows, and without her magic, Shadow Weaver is on her last legs of life at the dungeons of Mystacor.”_

_Shadow Weaver…the first mother figure that Adora and Catra ever knew and the one responsible for all the hell they’ve lived. She deserved nothing less than to rot and die. Maybe this would bring Catra a shred of comfort._

_“…And everyone else? The Fright Zone was several thousand strong. Where is everyone now?”_

_Glimmer perked up. “There was a_ huge _trial! It lasted weeks. All of the higher-ups and commanding officers and force captains are filling prisons across Etheria.”_

_Bile began to rise inside of Adora’s throat. “There’s no way Etheria has enough prison space for everyone.”_

_“Not everyone. My mom—” Glimmer made a_ blegh _sound with her mouth, like she disagreed with what she was saying, “—thought that a lot of the Fright Zone’s people are innocent. That they were victims as you were, and that they deserved a second chance.”_

_None of this made sense to Adora. It was nearly impossible wrapping her head around, not only the fact that the Horde was defeated, but so many of the people she’d called her friends back there…were in prison? For the rest of their lives?_

_Sure, some of them really deserved it. But not all of them. Maybe they deserved a second chance like Glimmer was saying, but the way she spoke made it sound…not right._

_Bow continued for Glimmer. “Yeah, so the council wanted to give them a chance to know what ‘real’ freedom is, and decided to expand Bright Moon and offer them jobs and give kids proper schooling experiences.”_

_Proper…schooling experiences? The children in the Horde? And the older ones made to work jobs?_

_Adora couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but something was too unsettling about all this. Every bit of it. Maybe this was just the way that the end of a war was supposed to feel._

_Maybe she felt like this because the war was ended…without her. There had to be some sort of solution to it all, maybe this was the only one._

_Maybe._

~~

Adora watched as early-morning construction crews milled as tiny as dots far below them. So many conflicting moods rolled over inside of her.

“The Rebellion has been at war with the Horde for _years_. Why invite them here?” she asked, not looking up. “Why be so lenient?”

The way that Glimmer and Bow had phrased it, if Adora could see the error of the Horde’s ways, then so could anyone. They didn’t entirely seem to believe it themselves, but she half-expected the queen to answer in the same way.

Instead, Angella lifted one of her shoulders into a shrug. “Everyone deserves a chance. We’re giving them one here, away from Hordak and Shadow Weaver. We’re giving them a future of choice.”

_They’re not going to see it like that._

They stood for a while, watching the light of the morning moons rise higher. The castle itself stayed quiet, but murmurs of life below quickly followed the light.

“The council starts just before noon,” Angella spoke after a period of silence. “Glimmer’s aunt will be arriving soon, but I’m afraid you won’t get a chance to say hello at all.”

Aunt Castaspella was a lot of fun to be around but can definitely be frightening when she wants to. The magic she used was nothing to be trifled with. The sigils Adora and Catra experienced in their Whispering Woods cabin were just a fraction of magic potential sorcerers had.

There was no doubt her truth spells would be the most valuable tool to the council, but…

“Will I be able to defend Catra to your council at all?” Adora took a step away from the balcony rail.

“Is there anything you’d tell them that you haven’t already told me?”

She wrung her hands in front of her. It was the only way to stop them from shaking. _No._

Queen Angella blinked sympathetically. “I know you’re worried.”

“Why aren’t _you?_ ”

“Perhaps this last year has made me soft, but I have confidence in my kingdom now more than ever. Catra…” Her hair shimmered when the moonlight finally hit it. “She’s hardly the same commander we’ve seen fight before. She’s not a threat right now, but that doesn’t—”

“—take away from what she’s done in the past, I know.”

The _past_ had treated them so poorly. It ripped their hearts out and shoved them back in upside-down. When Adora and Catra got stranded in the Whispering Woods, they actually got a chance to put each other back together again.

 _No one_ would be able to understand that like they did. No one could feel the things that they’ve felt and the pain of all the aftermath. No one would see Catra break down like Adora had, curled sobbing on their bedroom floor.

Rising from that type of self-loathing—the kind that crushed her spirit and drained her body dry—was something no one could even come close to understanding. And they couldn’t defend that.

The sting of it all kept Adora’s lungs aching. “What if she’s remorseful?”

“Remorse doesn’t rebuild all of the towns she’s burned down, nor the destruction she’s responsible for.”

Maybe it wasn’t too late to steal Catra from wherever they were keeping her and run back to the Woods??

Adora was too panicked to even cry. “What’s going to happen to her? Can I at least see her?”

“You know the answer to that, darling. Why don’t you and the others have breakfast and try to take your mind off the stress.” Their moment was over, and Angella guided the girl back indoors with one of her wings. “I will make sure our guest is taken care of while she’s here with us.”

The unsettled feeling hadn’t gone away, but Adora knew better than to press with further questions or argue. Her type of anxiety was different than they could imagine.

_I should get back. Bow and Glimmer are probably awake and wondering where I went._

Not feeling much better, Adora turned to the exit and only stopped when she heard one last thing from the queen.

“And Adora,” Angella spoke softly, “I won’t tell them.”

She furrowed her eyebrows. “About what?”

“You and Catra. Time does funny things to us all, and the heart isn’t immune to it. Try not to worry too much, okay? Go enjoy the yule festivals in town. After everything that’s happened, a little happiness is well-deserved.”

What she’d said only registered with Adora once she’d left.

So Queen Angella knew. About her and Catra.

 _Oh this was so embarrassing._ Consorting with the enemy—but she’s not the enemy, Adora told herself. They didn’t know that… Why wouldn’t her brain shut up??

Adora went back to her room, where the others were still asleep. She dragged her blanket from its spot on the bed and instead laid down between her two friend’s sleeping bags. There was no more sleeping, but maybe their snores would comfort her.

After a minute, Glimmer’s snores drowsily hiccupped and she rolled over the top of Adora’s legs. “God damn…” she grumbled. “Was Adora’s floor always this uncomfortable?”

In response, Bow flopped his arm sideways, hitting Adora across the face.

Only then did they all wake up.

For a solid five minutes, Glimmer and Bow just clung onto Adora, babbling about how grateful it wasn’t just a dream she was back. In any other circumstance, Adora probably would’ve cried and hugged back. However, her mood was completely horrid, and she really just wanted to be alone.

 _How selfish am I,_ she thought. _I should be happy._

But she wasn’t.

“Why don’t we bring up breakfast to you?” Bow offered. His hair was completely flat on one side from sleeping funny. “Breakfast in bed would be fun!” There was that pure twinkle of his eye.

Their excitement was too cute. “Sure,” Adora half-smiled up at them. “That’d be nice, thank you. I should really shower anyways.”

“Great!” Glimmer threw her arms around the other girl before her and Bow teleported out.

So much hugging… Adora had missed it. The Best Friend Squad was back together, and she had really missed their company. Glimmer’s fierce loyalty and Bow’s optimism clung to her long after their hug ended.

Time was going to drag, though.

Adora eventually got up to take a shower.

In the bathroom, she stripped all her clothes off and glanced briefly in the mirror before steam could fog it up. Her hair was kind of dirty and face mottled with healing frostbite. There were still those marks on her neck and chest, too, yellow healing bruises.

Adora reached up to touch one of the bite marks. Was this really all she had left of Catra right then? _Will I see her again?_

The negative thoughts were hard to shake. She’d always been prone to anxiety, but this was a different type. This was _crushing_.

She tried not to take too long showering. Having her own bathroom back was nice, being able to smell the scent of her own shampoo and having a fresh cloth to wash the last scents of the Woods away. Now all that filled her nose was the floral body wash and the rose oil applied to her face.

If only four weeks went by, why did she feel like a lifetime away from her past self?

Adora dressed, pulling on tan pants and a long-sleeved white shirt. Even clean socks. After leaving the restroom, she got startled by Swift Wind standing at her vanity trying to see the back of his mane in the mirror.

“Oh Adora!” He swung around, knocking a lamp over on accident. “I sensed trouble. Are you okay?”

The lamp lay in pieces on the floor, so Adora went over to pick it up. “Nothing’s the matter. I’m fine.” That last part was a lie, but there wasn’t any way she was going to have that sort of conversation with her steed.

No surprise, Swift Wind didn’t seem to believe her. He eyed the broken glass being dumped into the bin guiltily and tried tucking his wings in tighter. “I don’t have any parties to go to today. Can I stay here with you guys?”

“Of course.”

He was a comfort, and Adora appreciate it. She went up to him and leaned her head against his flank, just breathing in the clean smell of hay and the special brand of horse shampoo imported from Plumeria.

His legs shifted. “Are you sure you’re not in trouble? I’m getting really weird vibes from you. Distressed feelings.”

 _Blegh_. “It’s kind of a lot, Swifty. I don’t know how to explain it.”

“Well if you need to talk, I’m here. Also I can read your brainwaves pretty well.”

It was nice of him to offer, really it was. Adora closed her eyes and felt the connection they had almost like invisible threads of a spiderweb joining them together. She could feel his trust and pure intentions.

She could even sense his worry for her.

Suddenly, Adora eyes popped open, and she lifted her head from his fur. “Swift Wind?”

He burred quietly in response.

“I’m sorry I was gone. I missed you, and my friends…”

Almost on cue, Glimmer and Bow poofed into the bedroom, arms full of breakfast food baskets. A jug of lemonade teetered at the top of Bow’s arms.

“Here, let me help,” Adora offered, grabbing some of their load and helping them set it up in the center of the room. “You didn’t have to get so much. My stomach is basically the size of a walnut right now.”

“Yeah but you haven’t had real food in so long!”

They weren’t wrong. All of the food smelled so delicious, and after a month of just eating fruits, vegetables, and hardly-seasoned fish…

Adora ate as much as she could possibly handle without puking, washing it down with iced lemonade. _I wish I could share this with Catra right now,_ she thought, promising herself if they get to be together again they’d do this every day.

Eating everything was a challenge they accepted. After about an hour and talking and stuffing their faces, Adora had to stretch out on the floor of her bedroom and sigh.

“It’s a good thing the fate of the world doesn’t depend on me being able to do crunches.” She patted her stomach.

Swift Wind pulled a slice of lettuce out from a spare sandwich and ate it. “You and me both.”

“Can horses even do crunches?”

“…I don’t think so, no.”

They all lay in a pile around the room, trying to breathe off their meal. At that point, morning light reached all the way in, reflecting off frost outside and turning the air into rainbows.

Catra would probably think it was super lame. She’d make fun of this place every chance she got. Too bright, too sparkly. Too many pinks and purples.

_Gods, why can’t I take my mind off her for three seconds?_

Adora wanted to roll over and clutch her stomach, and she didn’t think it was because of all the food.

“There it is again.” Swift Wind nudged her in the shoulder. “Those weird vibes. You sure you’re not an abandoned puppy trapped inside my best friend’s body?”

_Uuugh._

It was really a shame there was nothing to inspire a lie out of Adora, because she wasn’t keen on spilling her heart and soul to people who wouldn’t understand. These were her friends; she knew she could talk to them about anything.

But this? There was no graceful way around this. Nothing that made it easier.

“Are you not feeling well, Adora?” Glimmer sat up. The buttons of her pajama top were crooked and purple hair fluffy since she hadn’t brushed it yet that morning.

Even though she was older, she was still the same girl who rescued Adora from the Horde so many years ago. Those big, purple eyes were staring at her with such a concern it made her feel _guilty_ for not telling them everything.

Adora groaned and sat up, too, but she didn’t answer.

 _This has never been hard before._ This has also never been about these kinds of feeling before, either.

“Is it about Catra?”

She looked up at Bow, startled that he guessed exactly what was on her mind. Honestly, what else would she be upset about?

Glimmer made a face. “You should just forget about her. She’s probably just conning you again, Adora.”

“Don’t be insensitive, Glimmer,” Bow chastised. “She’s clearly upset.”

“She’s _clearly_ brainwashed.”

“Okay, stop.” The way that they talked about her and her feelings was more upsetting that it should’ve been. Adora tried not to get angry. “You guys know me. I’m not stupid.”

“Adora…” Glimmer’s face scrunched from annoyed disgust to embarrassment. “I don’t think you’re stupid. I just… _We_ just care about you, that’s all.”

They care about her. Adora knew that. She _knew that_. But she wasn’t sure she’d have the right words to tell them what was going on.

Glimmer scooted closer to Adora and took her arm. It was a comforting gesture.

“When you first came to live with us,” she looked away, “you would be up almost every night with nightmares, remember? Even before we really cared about you, it was hard watching you process all the trauma and hurt you went through.”

All the trauma…

Remembering how it felt to stitch herself back up after everything she’d been through felt like tearing a fresh wound. But _Catra_ … She went through all of that and worse.

 _Catra_ was the one who would go to bed with an empty stomach and bruised eyes.

 _Catra_ was the one who would lie awake with her when she couldn’t sleep and pretend she didn’t notice when Adora would braid the ends of her hair.

 _Catra_ was there for Adora, and Adora just left her. And she let the Bright Moons guards take her away again. _She should’ve fought harder._

“…Adora?”

When Adora closed her eyes, the backs of her eyelids glowed white-hot. _She needed to calm down, calm down. Stop thinking so much about it._

About _her_.

The bones of her ribcage felt like they were clattering together. It might’ve been uncomfortable if she cared, but she had almost gone…numb.

“Hey,” Swift Wind poked at Adora’s hand with his muzzle. “What’s wrong? You’re making my head hurt.”

Adora knew she was allowing herself to lose control, but everything inside of her was too much. Too much anger at herself, too much of everything. A lump was growing hard in her throat.

“I know you guys hate her,” she turned into Swift Wind’s wing to avoid making eye contact, “and you have a right to. But you didn’t see what I did, out there in the Whispering Woods.”

Bow and Glimmer shifted closer to one another, clearly not knowing how to react properly.

This didn’t stop Adora’s wrecking train of thought. “I know we all wish it hadn’t taken so long, but she…she’s had nightmares, too. She’s gone through worse than I have, and she knows the things she did were horrible.”

Glimmer opened her mouth to say something, but Bow stopped her with a shake of his head.

“The feeling of regret that comes after recognizing something like that is poisonous,” Adora continued. “Knowing the kinds of horrible things you’ve done and knowing they were wrong and knowing there’s nothing you can do to fix it.”

The sound of the waterfall outside was almost ominous white noise.

“Thinking you’re better off dead than alive.” A few hot tears fell from Adora’s eyes and she felt the burning subside for just a second. “The hatred you feel for yourself takes over everything else you know.”

Spilling emotions like this was simultaneously a relief and a burden. Each word that left her mouth felt like stones being thrown into a glass window.

“Catra just needed to know what it was like for something to genuinely care about her.”

 _And I’m that person for her_.

_She’s that person for me, too._

Adora finally got the nerve to look up with stinging eyes at her friends.

Bow held onto Glimmer’s hand with what looked like a crushing strength. His own eyes twinkled with crocodile tears.

“Adora…” he sniffed. “I think I understand what you’re talking about now. How you feel about Catra.”

_He does?_

If they were to understand without her having to say it aloud… If they were to actually understand her feelings…

“You’re each other’s _best friends_.” Bow draped himself dramatically across Glimmer’s lap. “I can’t believe we’ve been so insensitive.”

Oh. Wait—no.

Adora puckered her lips. “No, that’s not—”

“Glimmer, _tell her_ how supportive we are.”

It looked visibly hard for Glimmer not to roll her eyes. “Well, of course we’re supportive, but it’s _Catra.”_

“What if I turned evil for a few years and then came back to you?” Bow squished his face against the top of his best friend’s head. “We would always be friends. I would want you to help me learn the errors of my way, too.”

_Did they…think Catra and Adora were just friends?_

_Did…_

Adora almost laughed out loud, half in disbelief and half in pity for being so oblivious. “Um. You know, guys, it’s a little different than that.”

For the millionth time in the last twenty-four hours, the other two tackled Adora into a big hug. They hit her gut a little too hard because she almost puked all her breakfast up.

They sprawled into a Best Friend Squad pile, shedding crumbs across the pile of sleeping bags.

“Adora, we love you so much,” Glimmer wiped her eyes off with the sleeve of Adora’s shirt. “You’re such an amazing person. If anyone can see the good in…well, _anyone,_ it’s you. You must really care about Catra to want to do this for her.”

This…wasn’t quite what Adora imagined. They weren’t 100% accurate with their realization, but they were trying. It was sweet.

It was a step forward, and that was all she needed for now.

“Thanks, you two.” Adora squeezed them back, tight enough to feel the wound inside of her close just a little bit. “Nothing is going to be the same, and I know that, but this matters a lot to me.”

There were no more tears.

Except for maybe Bow, who was as sentimental as always. He coughed a bit of Glimmer’s hair from his mouth. “We’re here for you, Adora. We always will be.”

“And if there’s every anything we can do for you to move forward, let us know, okay?”

Adora lifted her head up and stared at Glimmer. “Do you mean that?”

“Of course I do.”

“Thank you, Glimmer.” She smiled a genuine smile and made up her mind in an instant. “Because there’s something you can do for me.”


	3. Council

The times in Catra’s life she’s felt vulnerable were too many times to count on her fingers. Even her very earliest memories were of towering figures and red eyes and steel-cold voices. That type of fear was her guardian growing up; it made her stronger, bigger. For a long time, it was fuel.

She’d eventually managed to chain that fear down into the very corner of her mind where it couldn’t hurt her anymore.

The walls of the council room rattled those chains loose. Ceilings…too high. Too bright. To many faces looking at her. Her chair was much softer than those in the Fright Zone, but she couldn’t get comfortable with two dozen leaders staring her into the ground.

She felt small…small…small enough to shrink into the cracks of the floors. Not necessarily scared of what’s going on the outside but on the inside.

Most of the council members weren’t even that tough-looking. Most of them were dressed in bright colors or had embellishments braided into their hair. _Typical spoiled._

The members sat in tall chairs that made a U-shape around Catra’s own seat. The crux of the U was where Queen Angella sat, in full royal robes. The few times that Catra had seen her, she still saw the stained posters hanging on the Fright Zone walls.

She wanted so badly to hate her and everything she stood for. Blame it on Adora, but she couldn’t. There was no real hatred. So what _was_ she feeling?

Catra looked to her left and saw another royal figure, one she didn’t recognize, standing closer than the others. Everything from her winged eyeliner to her black lipstick was sharp as daggers, and an updo of black hair was trapped in a glowing circlet. She looked…vaguely familiar, but hard to place.

“Catra of the Horde,” the Queen’s voice drew her gaze back to the front. “You are here today for planetary treason. The council has been called to assess the charges and determine punishment.”

That sounds about right, Catra thought. She lowered her head.

“Castaspella, if you will.”

The woman with black hair stepped into Catra’s personal space and rubbed some crystalline powder between her fingers before touching them to the prisoner’s collarbone.

Catra immediately flinched away, disliking being touched by a stranger especially in such a vulnerable place. When she flinched, everyone in the room did as well. Then followed suit when she quieted down. This was almost worse than whatever punishment she imagined.

The woman—Castaspella—drew something carefully on the center of Catra’s collarbone. “A spell for the truth and nothing but the truth.” She went around the back of the seat, lifted up Catra’s hair, and drew another shape at the base of her neck. “And a spell for a loose tongue. There will be no secrets here.”

Catra could feel the shapes as they were drawn, burning almost like a fire poker was dragged across the flesh. It melted downwards into her bone, followed by a sensation that was almost indescribable.

Maybe something like feeling a hot drink slipping down your throat, but in every pore of her body. As the spells suggested, her brain and tongue became slightly number than she was used to. This must’ve been the magic working.

While she hadn’t quite expected this, Catra didn’t have much to defend herself with. Nothing at _all_ if the spells worked.

Castaspella stepped away and then the queen spoke again, addressing Catra once more. “Now, state your name.”

“Catra.” She wouldn’t have lied about that even if she hadn’t been under the influence of magic.

There was someone at the edge of the room with a fancy-looking pen and a piece of parchment, scribbling down everything that was said.

“This council is going to last until a decision can come unanimously between its members.” Queen Angella gestured a hand to her left and then to her right. “It’s made up of leaders and elders from across Etheria, all who have directly or indirectly been affected by the Horde’s reign of terror.”

Ouch. It wasn’t surprising, but seeing all these faces made the truth hurt a little more.

“The first spell on your skin makes it impossible to lie while under it, but without the second revokes your right to remain silent. You are expected to answer every question, is that understood?”

“Yes,” Catra responded without even thinking. She understood it, sure.

“Good. Now.” The queen spoke again. “Did you come to Bright Moon of your own accord?”

“Uh…” The magic made Catra’s mind horribly fuzzy. “Kind of? I mean, I didn’t really want to.” Oh boy, she was going to be blabbering. This was the most humiliating kind of trial.

“Did Adora willingly escort you?”

“Yeah, she did.” Escort wasn’t the word she’d use, though. Coerce? Catra almost laughed a little to herself.

The person in the corner kept writing without looking up.

The marking on the back of Catra’s neck tickled like a spider was crawling up her. She shimmied a little in her chair to scratch the itch, but it was hard with her hands bound.

“The following questions are not open-ended, so just a yes or no answer will suffice.” Angella adjusted herself on her throne and sat back with a gaze as stern as ever. “Understood?”

“Sure.”

Some of the council members glared, as though to wordlessly scold her for talking so casually to royalty.

“Yes or no: You were a commanding member of the Horde army.”

“Yes.”

“You have knowingly and willingly performed acts of violence against the planet and its civilians.”

“Yes.” These questions really felt like an attack, but so far, Catra had no intention to lie. Maybe it was the truth spell, or maybe it was her urge to come clean. Everything they were saying was _true_.

Angella blinked. “You have willingly aided Hordak to take down the Princesses and the Rebellion.”

“…Yes.”

Through the fog of her brain, Catra saw Adora laughing at her. Blond hair in a ponytail. Stormy blue eyes rolling at something she said. Acting dumb but so adorable.

“You have willingly made attempts to hurt or kill the Princesses and members of the Rebellion.”

Again, it felt like Adora was there with her. There was such a distinct wall between this girl she loved so much and the girl she tried to kill. Why was there a divide inside of her, and what had caused it? Each question inside of her just hurt, like the spells were trying to get her to answer her own questions.

“I did,” Catra finally responded to the question. She had her eyes down at her bound hands. “Multiple times.”

The anger she’d felt…the hatred for the world taking someone away from her like that. She had wanted to kill everyone and herself. She hadn’t needed to put that afterthought, and it made the members of the council stir for a moment.

The following pause in their questions lasted too long, made her even more uncomfortable than the actual questioning was had her. The scribe kept writing, members kept muttering to one another. All the while, Angella stayed silent and just watching the person at the center of the room.

Finally, when things quieted down, the queen continued like they hadn’t paused at all.

“Catra. You have knowingly and willingly put other in peril to further your own selfish cause. Yes or no?”

The spells buzzed inside of her so loudly that Catra had to squinch her eyes shut tight. “I don’t know if I’d really use the word _selfish_ —”

“Answer the question, please.”

“Yes, I have.” She kept her eyes closed. The back of her neck continued throbbing, pulsing with each beat of her heart. It was impossible to say silent, to keep the noises in her head away. “My team, my… They wouldn’t call themselves my friends. I didn’t treat them like friends. Are they okay?”

More murmurs from the council.

Angella spoke, “Yes, they are, but we are not discussing that today.”

Cold relief—was it relief?—washed over Catra so hard she nearly fell sideways. _They were okay_. The damage she did…might be reversible. She still had a chance at redemption with them. Even if she didn’t deserve it.

“They probably think I’m dead.” Catra tried to keep the swirling emotions from making her cry. “They’re probably relieved. I treated them so badly.”

Again, more whispering. More writing. Then the queen held her hand up to continue.

“Have you willingly and intentionally prompted acts of violence against civilians?”

“…I never wanted—”

“Answer, please.”

“Yes.” The swirling noises… Filling every crack and crevice of Catra’s head with pain and guilt and guilt and _guilt_. She dug her fingernails into her thighs.

“Catra.”

Her eyes peeled open and turned upwards. Tears made what she saw blurry.

“Do you feel any remorse for any of this?”

Claws pierced her legs and the burning sensation went from the spells on her neck to the gouges in her skin. Trickles of blood ran into her leg fur.

“ _Yes.”_

From then, Catra’s senses felt to have shut off. She couldn’t hear the talking of the council, the shuffling of feet. She couldn’t see through the burning tears or the fog muffling every cell in her body. She couldn’t taste, couldn’t feel, but pain.

 _I want Adora,_ she wanted to cry. _Can I just see her? Please?_

She’d thought all this was done, all the self-hatred and the fear and the panic. But of course it wasn’t.

Only Queen Angella’s voice broke through the screaming fog. “Let’s take a short recess and resume in an hour.”

Catra didn’t feel herself be gently lifted from under the arm, or the fact that she briefly tried to fight it. She was taken to a separate, smaller room to get bandaged from the freshest wounds. Luckily, it must not have been too bad, because it only took a few minutes for her to find herself alone in the room.

Alone.

Again.

She missed Adora, she wanted to see her. Maybe it would be a comfort, like what she was fighting all this for. There was a reason she wasn’t just giving her life up, and Adora was that reason.

She needed to remember that.

The spells kept burning, loosening the tight grip of her jaw unintentionally to the point where she found herself growling.

Eventually, Angella came back into the room and retrieved her, and they continued with the council.

For another hour, they listed out specific deeds and Catra’s role in them. The truth spell stayed firm, and Catra didn’t fight at all. She didn’t even _try_ to fight. They listed one thing after another and she cooperated fully, even though she didn’t quite have much of a choice.

Do it for Adora, she thought. It was the best chance to be with her again.

After some time, her butt began aching and the spells were giving her a splitting headache. All of these questions had answers that everyone clearly already knew, but they had to say it anyways.

The truth… She _knew_ the truth, but that didn’t make anything easier. She _knew_ everything she’d done.

How could Adora love her after this? No matter how many time Adora would say that the past was behind them—Catra could hardly ever believe her. Believe that she was worthy of that kind of love.

Eventually, they got another break, and Catra was allowed to get up and walk around. The members of the council, including Angella, were in another room probably talking about everything, going over their notes. All the while, Catra tried to calm herself down.

When they came back together, Catra’s headache hadn’t improved. The spells on her neck twisted all her insides up.

“Let up continue where we left off, at the Battle of Wimborne.” Angella settled herself into her chair, expression as hard to read as ever. “Explain your point of view during it, please.”

_Oh fun._

Catra tried to explain.

Their goal, the First One’s rune they’re found near Wimborne. The siege as a distraction. The children who tried to stop them, and the Horde cadets in the mecha…pointing the canon to the kids…

When she got to the part where she blew up her own mecha, however, it suddenly made no sense to anyone.

“You were going to murder innocent children?” A council member squinted her eyes.

“No, not…me.” Catra hated this story.

“Then what happened?”

“…I blew the ship up. And everyone inside.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” another council member said. They leaned back in their chair, arms crossed, looking sour. “The truth spell must not be working. Why would you blow yourself up?”

 _They really think they’re so funny._ Catra could feel the bags growing underneath her eyes. “You want to look at me and ask that question after peeling apart my crimes all day? Why I, the bane of this planet’s existence, would rather die than continue to hurt people?”

The person who had spoken looked shocked. They leaned over and muttered something to one of the other members, and the group took a minute talking amongst themselves while Angella still just stared at Catra.

When they quieted down, Angella asked Catra to retell the story that her and Adora told yesterday about their last four weeks in the Whispering Woods.

Of everything… It wasn’t as though every bit of this story was unpleasant to share, but she didn’t want to. It was _her_ story that she shared with Adora and Adora alone. It was _their_ story. The whole thing was hard enough having to tell Glimmer and Bow and Queen Angella, but the entire council room?

It had been told too many times—enough that the specialness didn’t belong to her anymore.

At the back of Catra’s neck, the markings that Castaspella drew tugged at her spine. It was supposed to keep her talking, so there weren’t any secrets between them, but she fought it. _You can’t take this from me,_ she wanted to say.

For some reason, this drew a sympathetic look from the queen.

“Maybe it would be easier if we broke it up for you,” Angella offered. “After you…blew up your ship, what is the first thing you remember?”

The memories were uncomfortable reliving. “Pain. Being both hot and cold at the same time.” Catra swallowed. “Adora.”

“Why didn’t you try hurting her?”

“I couldn’t _move_.” She’d been burnt to a crisp.

“If you could have moved after waking up, would you have hurt her?”

“I…don’t know.” _Probably._

At least that was truth. It was easy to remember the hatred she felt, but it _wasn’t_ to try and feel the motivation behind it.

Catra reached up with a shackled hand to touch the truth spell at her neck. “It took a while for me to remember what happened, and by then, I realized…she’d saved my life. _Again._ And I hated her for it.” She subconsciously realized she was babbling, but it relieved some of the spell’s headaches. “Maybe I did want to hurt her, because she took that last bit of control I had away from me.”

This didn’t seem to surprise Angella. Her eyes cast across the scars on the girl’s cheek. “Wounds you received in the battle would’ve easily killed you. How did you survive?”

 _She’s heard this story before._ “Adora.”

“Why did she heal you, do you know?”

 _Pain, more pain_. When she opened her mouth, the headache lessened even more. “Because she’s a good person. She’s kind.” Catra missed her so deeply her chest hurt. “She helps people, even when they hate her. She’s everything I’m not.” She looked back down at her hands. “ _I_ wouldn’t have saved me.”

More murmuring from the council.

Catra couldn’t even bother to care what they were talking about. She did her best just to focus on her headache.

Angella spoke again. “As you recovered, did you get the chance to harm her?”

“Yes.” _Many chances._

“Did you want to?”

“At first. But I didn’t.”

“What changed?”

 _What changed?_ That wasn’t as easy of a question to answer as they might not have thought. It wasn’t like she didn’t want to answer it, but… Catra thought back to the different ways that she saw Adora back in their Whispering Woods cabin.

Adora, kneeling over their fireplace. Adora, cutting fruits for their dinner. Adora, wearing _that_ nightgown and looking at her with tenderness she didn’t even feel before. _She fell in love_. But that was too stupid to say.

Catra swallowed. “She’s the only person to see stuff inside me that I didn’t.”

“Like what?”

 _Gods, please stop asking these questions_. It was hard to be so vulnerable in front of all these strangers. “Hard” didn’t even quite cut it. Even though the spells turned her brain too mushy to fight, that didn’t stop her from regretting each word.

Catra lifted up her shoulders in a defeated shrug, still not meeting the queen’s eyes. “She’s the only person in my life worth living for. When she’d first left the Horde, I…” Her throat closed, and she didn’t finish that sentence.

Silence.

The councilmembers must have looked at Castaspella, but she made a tutting noise. “My spells are working perfectly fine,” she said.

What, did they not believe her? Was it so impossible to believe that someone like her could have feelings? Of course it was.

They needed someone to blame, and Catra held _all_ the blame. She did. There was no lie in that.

Angella smiled just a little at Castaspella, almost like an apology, and then she cleared her throat at Catra. “Just a few more questions, then we can be done.”

 _Wonderful._ There was no straightening the slump to her shoulders.

“Do you have any plan of resuming the destruction or conquering of Etheria?”

“No.”

“Do you have any harmful intentions towards members of the Rebellion?”

“No.” _I want to see Adora._

“Do you still hold loyalty to Hordak, Shadow Weaver, the Horde in general, or their ideals?”

Hearing those horrible names felt like puncturing nails underneath Catra’s skin. “No.” _I just want Adora, let me see her._

The members of the council were stirring, a few of them grumbling in upset tones and shifting in their seats.

“Do you have any harmful intentions towards Adora or She-Ra?”

“No.” _Let me see her._ “Never again.”

When she said that, half of the council stood from their seats. Eyebrows were furrowed and words were spat, and they only stopped to bow briefly at Angella before storming out of the room. The other half took a little longer to leave, but they all had similar upset grumbling.

This might have confused Catra, if she’d cared at all. She didn’t even watch them go. How much longer did she have to wait there?

After hardly a minute, the only people left in the large council room were Catra, Queen Angella, Castaspella, and the guards.

Catra blinked slowly. “What’s wrong with them?”

After standing from her chair, Angella went up to her. “Some of them want justice. After locking Shadow Weaver and Hordak up, it might not have been as much of a satisfactory ending they wanted.”

“…Do they want me dead?”

She shook her head. “I can’t tell you what they want, but we’re all done here. The spells worked as well as they could’ve.”

As well as they could’ve… Everything she said was the truth. And after all that she was just _tired_.

Two guards, Queen Angella, and Castaspella escorted Catra to her holding cell (which was just the spare room with a magical force field in its center so she wouldn’t be able to escape. Although she didn’t understand quite why they all escorted her, Angella was quick to dismiss the others.

Soon, it was Catra behind the barrier and Angella on the other side. She was looking down at her with an expression almost of intrigue. Not pity. That, at the very least, was something to be grateful for.

“The spells should wear off in a few hours,” she said, folding her hands in front of her. “I apologize if they cause you discomfort in the meantime.”

Catra just made a noncommittal noise in her throat. It was hard truly caring, even about the weird leniency the queen was showing towards her? The spare room she was in had a private bathroom, a comfortable-looking bed, chair, wardrobe. It was hardly a cell.

Yet, she wasn’t sure it was _gratitude_ she felt for it all.

“May I ask you something, off the record?” Angella’s expression didn’t waver.

“I don’t have much of a choice not to answer, do I?” Even to her own ears, Catra’s voice was tired and defeated. She had to sit on the edge of the bed as to not sink.

“Why did you come back here to Bright Moon?” The question, spoken in Angella’s softness, sounded easy to answer. “You could’ve stayed. I’m sure you knew what you’d go through coming here. So why come here?”

_Why, indeed?_

When Catra closed her eyes, she saw that stupid blond ponytail behind her eyelids. “It sounds like you already know that answer.”

Angella smiled. “Perhaps I do. She sees a lot in you.”

She must’ve been saying those things to make Catra feel better, but the last thing Catra wanted to do was to talk about her love life with the Queen of Bright Moon. Her body language must have given that away, because the queen stood to turn.

“I hope to have something decided by tomorrow for you. We’ll bring dinner for you in a bit, so please eat and get some rest. Adora will want to know that you’re taking care of yourself.”

With that, she left the room, and Catra was again alone with her thoughts.

Bright Moon was much quieter than the Fright Zone, but not as peaceful as the house in the Whispering Woods.

As promised, guards delivered her dinner when light outside her window was dimming. She didn’t eat it, though; her stomach churned as the spells were wearing off her body. Their effects were still felt lingering, but there was no way she could actually digest anything right then. Too much stress.

She paced instead, walking from one end of her invisible barrier to the other. There was no balcony on this room like Adora’s had, but there was a large glass window that held a nice view. She saw the endless stretch of the Whispering Woods and shapes in the distance…were those the mountains near the Fright Zone?

It was impossible not to feel a weird sort of nostalgia for what she called home for so many years. In all of these swirling emotions, she knew that in some way, Adora felt the same. Both guilt and regret, but relief for it being over.

Relief.

She was finally allowed to be herself, even if that meant she was going to be locked away in prison forever. No more abuse from Shadow Weaver. No more controlling Hordak. No more fear. Even in prison, it will be the freest she’s ever been (asides from the Whispering Woods).

Catra stopped pacing and sat down on the floor with her back against the bed.

Time passed slowly.

Then, without warning—

_**POOF**_

Catra nearly leapt out of her fur. She flew sideways, tail bristling straight up, and had to scramble off of all fours to look behind her.

It was—

“Catra!!”

She hardly had the time to register who it was before Adora lunged and smacked face-first into the forcefield.

“Ow, god,” Adora winced, rubbing her nose in pain before catching the other girl’s eye. “Catra!” Looking horribly relieved and frazzled, she sat up and got as close to the forcefield as possible. So close the blue in her eyes shone. “Are you okay? How are you feeling?”

 _Adora_. Catra’s own relief hit her like a truck and she scooted closer as well. If it hadn’t been for the barrier, they might’ve been just a foot apart and she might not have been able to stop herself from tackling her. But—

“Keep your voice down, Adora,” Glimmer, who was _also_ in the room, had her arms crossed and looked nervously at the room door. “If someone hears us, we’re in big trouble.”

Catra wanted to say something rude about three being a crowd, but she kept a straight face. “I’m going to guess that you’re not supposed to be in here right now?”

Though Glimmer turned to keep watch on the door, Adora pressed closer and held her hand up to the barrier. “Glimmer broke me in.”

It was impossible not to be surprised. “Willingly? Or did you bribe her?”

“I didn’t bribe her,” Adora let out a small laugh, and she glanced over at her friend near the door. “I just wanted to see you, so she took me.”

Never did Catra imagine she’d feel such intense appreciation towards that princess, but she did. Maybe it showed on her face, because there was a different type of look on Adora’s face.

“Catra…”

 _Say my name again,_ Catra clenched her jaw tight. She hoped all of her emotions were put into her eyes so she wouldn’t have to say them aloud. To have Adora there in front of her…

Her chest squeezed so tight she almost stopped breathing. “How’re you doing?” The words weren’t as casual as she wanted them to be.

Adora caught on. She bit her bottom lip. “Honestly, I didn’t think I was going to see you again. How did the council go?”

“About how I expected. Guilty, guilty. Murder. Death.”

“They’re going to kill you??”

“No, god, Adora.” Catra almost laughed, just because that wasn’t even the worst scenario that crossed her mind. “I mean, it kind of seemed like they wanted to kill me, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.”

Adora’s eyebrows knit. _Gods, she was cute_.

“Don’t joke about those kinds of things. I’m going to get you out,” she promised, but the only earned a huff from Glimmer behind her.

“You can’t break her out!” the princess said in a shocked whisper. “Then we would all be in serious trouble!”

“I hate to say it,” Catra crossed her legs, “but Sparkles is right. You can’t bust me out. Whatever they decide, I _have_ to accept.”

“But—”

“Adora.” She put her hand up on the barrier, and if it hadn’t been there, they would’ve been touching. She couldn’t even care that Glimmer was watching. “You shouldn’t be in here. Whatever happens to me,” her heart broke just a little, “you can’t be involved.”

The way Glimmer was staring at them both made the air a little more awkward than it would’ve been.

“Catra, I brought you here. There’s no way I’m _not_ involved. I deserve at least a minute to say hi.”

The beating inside of Catra’s heart sped up just a bit and she wanted to forget there was a third person in the room. “Okay. I _might have_ missed you.” The last bit of the truth spell buzzed on her throat as she said that, but she didn’t even feel self-conscious about it.

Adora blinked, glanced at Glimmer (who wasn’t looking at them) and then back. “I missed you too. How are _you_ doing?”

“The same, I guess.”

Adora’s face screwed up a little. “I hate how calm you are about this. But…I trust you.” There was a huffing noise in the back of her throat, and she looked back at Glimmer—who was looking away—before continuing quieter. “I trust you, Catra, I just… I can’t lose you again.”

Those words…

Catra wished there wasn’t the forcefield. She wanted to reach out and touch Adora’s face and hold her hands and run her fingers through her hair. She didn’t want to lose her again, either.

Her two pieces of self were ripping her apart. The acceptance of what happened in the past and the need to move forward from it.

Adora almost visibly melted, too. “After all this, you still like me, right?”

“ _Of course_ ,” Catra answered, way too fast. She’ll blame it on the truth spell.

When Glimmer glanced over at them, Catra put her hand down. _Does she know about Adora and I? Adora would’ve had to tell her…_

“You need to leave before you’re caught. We wouldn’t want the queen getting mad.” _She’d probably be terrifying when mad._

This got a frustrated expression from Adora, but she didn’t argue. She stood, her eyes staying on Catra the entire time.

“I’ll see you soon, okay?” Her voice was soft, a whisper so gentle that Catra wanted to wrap herself in it. She noticed the plate of uneaten food on the floor. “And eat some food, stupid.”

“Okay, fine. Jeez. See you soon.”

Catra watched as the other girl took Glimmer’s arm and they vanished again, leaving behind only a puff of glitter.

She knew that she had to have at least a little hope to get herself through. Whatever the council decides, she had to go with. She couldn’t find. She’d spent too long fighting. Now, all there was to do was wait.

Catra rested her forehead on the barrier and held onto the sight of Adora’s face as long as she could.

The evening was quiet.

No more visits from anyone.

She fell asleep on the floor, looking out at the night sky that held no stars.

Morning came abruptly with a knock on the door.

Catra had a horrible crick in her neck from sleeping as she did, but she managed to groan and roll over. If she didn’t say “come in,” would they still come in?

The door opened, two guards entering. Although they both were in full guard uniforms with their faces covered, they were definitely the guards from the previous night.

“Miss Catra,” the one of the left said, “we’re to escort you to the council room where you’ll get the chance to eat breakfast before hearing the council’s decision.”

“That soon, huh?” Catra responded in a bored voice, even though adrenaline shot through her veins. “Didn’t take them long.”

The guards didn’t respond, but instead released the forcefield with some sort of device. Then came the shackles again. Catra hated how she was already use to this, but she promised herself that she wouldn’t argue or fight. It was much better to stay silent.

She walked behind the guards back to the council room from yesterday. Instead of the full council setup, this time, there was just a handful of guards as well as Queen Angella and Castaspella.

The two women were sitting on their high seats—not quite thrones—waiting for their guest to arrive. Breakfast was provided, as promised, but Catra didn’t eat. When she didn’t eat, the other two had guards take away their own meals.

“I guess we’ll start immediately,” Angella looked over at Castaspella, who looked like she was in a bit of a better mood today.

There were no spells, and Catra wondered what exactly she was there for if not to place the spells. Perhaps just because no one else from the council wanted to be there?

Catra felt a little better than she did during the council yesterday, but she still held her shackled hands close to her stomach.

“Good morning, Catra.” Angella was the first one to speak. “How are you feeling after yesterday?”

Without the truth spell, Catra wondered why she’d ask that question. Maybe she was just being nice? For what cause, she wasn’t sure. “Fine,” Catra responded.

“That’s good. General?” The queen nodded to the closest guard, who had a scar across her nose. “If you will.”

When the general stepped closer, Catra flinched; she expected to be tackled or chained further or dragged away, but instead—

The general bent down, took Catra’s hands, and took the glowing circlet cuffs off her wrists. Her face was still covered by the helmet, but there was uncertainty set in her jaw.

What…?

Catra rubbed one of her wrists and looked up at Angella. “Is this where I say my last words?” she joked, but there was no hiding the confusion in her voice.

The air wasn’t cold, but it tasted like ice. Was that just the nervousness on her tongue? The excitement in her bones?

“Catra,” Angella crossed one of her legs over her other. “The council deliberated for over eight hours last night, and I’m please to tell you we’ve come to a decision.”

_Eight hours? Was there really that much to talk about?_

“I’ve lived a long time, and the one thing that stays the same is that _nothing_ stays the same.” Her hair really did glow in the light. “There are a lot of differences between the Horde and Bright Moon, aside from the obvious. We believe in growth and second chances.”

Catra’s first instinct was to defend her old home, but what was said wasn’t _wrong._ She chewed on the inside of her lip.

The queen continued. “The truth spell makes things a lot easier for us. You owned up to everything that’s been done, and you’re on a path to make up for these losses. Now,” her gaze got sterner, “that being said, you will not be released without conditions.”

 _I just want to see Adora._ Catra’s heart began speeding up again.

“As of right now, the council _has_ decided to grant you an open citizenship with Bright Moon—”

She nearly collapsed with relief.

“—However,” Angella smiled warmly, recognizing the relief, “there are a few stipulations.”

No spells to alter what came out of Catra’s mouth, but before she could even think, she let out a heavy breath. “Anything. As long as I get to see Adora again.”

Admitting that—she couldn’t even be _embarrassed._ Talking like that in front of the queen meant nothing, as long as she got what she wanted in the end. And she wanted Adora.

Queen Angella’s expression and posture warmed even more when she heard that. “I know. She talks very highly of you, and that did play a part in our council’s decision.”

What? “Did you talk to her before the trial?” Catra was curious.

“I’m sure she’ll tell you all about that when you see her later today,” Angella said, holding out one of her hands to motion to the guards. “Until further notice, you must be accompanied by a guard, council or Rebellion member wherever you are except for your room, which _will_ be guarded.”

“Will—”

“Yes, Adora counts.”

Catra’s heart just swelled. She couldn’t believe it. She wanted more time to be able to soak all this time, to process it, but everything was happening so fast. _Adora, I want to see Adora._ She was just about ready to run out the room and shout Adora’s name until she found her.

“Now Catra,” the queen stood, prompting the other girl to stand as well, “you’re a smart girl. Our past can only be described as rocky, and you’ve called a lot of grief for many people.”

 _This was true._ Catra didn’t feel she deserved what she was getting.

“But everyone deserves a second chance, and Bright Moon is yours. If there’s ever a time our people need someone to look up to, I expect to find your face right there next to Adora’s. Okay?”

 _Our people_. Her and Adora’s?

Catra didn’t know the exact emotions she was feeling at that moment. There were way too many of them clogging up her head, followed each by _Adora, Adora, Adora._

Who Catra was in the past almost didn’t matter to her anymore. She knew there was still so much to fix and learn; Scorpia and Entrapta were somewhere in Bright Moon right now, and at some point, she had to confront the way that she treated them to them. Her old squad, too.

But right then…

Catra couldn’t control the jitters down to her feet, so she stood up out of the chair. “Can I go see her now?”

One of the guards that had been standing next to the general straighten up. “I’d be happy to escort you.”

Angella cape shimmered when she laughed. “Please go. If you have any questions, I will be here for you.”

If it hadn’t been for the fact that she had no idea the layout of the castle, Catra would’ve sprinted to her. Instead, she had to impatiently follow her guard through hallways. All the while, she couldn’t get Angella’s words from her head.

This was it. This was her second chance.

Catra was going to do things differently this time. And she was going to do them with _Adora._

She was going to prove that she was worth fighting for—that she deserved Adora. This was her promise, to herself, to the world, and to _her._

She couldn’t wait to get started.


	4. To Just Be

Standing in front of Adora’s room door, Catra ran through about a hundred different ways she could tell her what happened. The easiest thing would be, “ _we can finally be together”_ but those words didn’t quite sound right.

The feelings, though… She was finding it hard to stand. Her legs were jelly and her heart was beating _way_ too fast.

Was that all there was too it? Sitting through a day of the council yesterday was exhausting and emotionally draining. Catra hadn’t slept well last night either; the only thing she wanted was to curl up and nap with Adora until she felt ready to face her day.

She wasn’t _ready_ for much at that second.

She just wanted to see Adora. That’s all she needed. It was a stupid, insignificant little plea but nothing else could fit inside of her mind edgewise. It was a much less destructive obsession than before, however, and she wouldn’t change anything for the world.

The guard at Catra’s side said nothing and had perfectly neutral body language, and this made her uneasy for some reason. _I guess I’d better get used to it, though. This will be life for a while._ Her own personal bodyguard for the rest of the foreseeable future? Kind of cool if it was under different circumstances.

The door was tall, but nothing was heard from the other side of it.

Catra knocked.

Pause, then shuffling. A few indiscernible words.

The door opened, with Adora on the other side. Her hair was down her shoulders and all messy in her face, and it looked like she hardly slept. Even her clothes, a tank top and shorts, were twisted. They were shades of grey, like the standard issue bedclothes they wore while living in the Fright Zone, but way cuter.

 _She looks like a mess_ , Catra thought, but her heart jumped immediately in her throat. “Hey, Adora.”

Adora’s confused blue eyes flick between her and the guard. She looked like she wanted to be shocked but also wasn’t sure if what she was seeing was real. Maybe she was still half asleep, or half-dead from the stress she clearly causes herself.

“Hey.” She cleared a frog from her throat and licked her lips. “Did…?”

“Yeah. I’m good.” Catra wanted to move forwards. But she didn’t. “Everything’s good. Are you busy?”

No answer.

For some reason, Adora just stood there bobbing her mouth with dazed eyes until her friends came up behind her. They’d clearly spent the night in her room, as both were in pajamas too, ruffled like they had woken up not long ago.

Glimmer and Bow both looked at each other at the same time, and Glimmer put her hand on Adora’s arm. “Hey, why don’t we leave you alone? You probably have a lot to catch up on.” Her expression was full of sparkly fondness that made Catra want to scoff.

“Sure, thanks.” After Adora let them move past her and leave. The princess turned and shot a dangerous look at Catra before leaving, though, like _if you touch one hair on her head, I’ll kill you._ Then Adora addressed the guard standing outside of the doorway. “Do you need to come in?”

The guard shook her head. “No, ma’am. But our guest can’t go unescorted, so I will be close if you need me.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

The shortness of words, Adora not looking Catra in the eye. It wasn’t an awkwardness, not quite. Unfortunately, Catra felt a similar type of discomfort.

Now that the council was over, she wasn’t entirely sure how to feel. Things felt so much simpler between them at their house in the Whispering Woods. It was _their_ house, but now she was in Bright Moon. This castle would always feel like enemy territory rather than home.

And Adora…being back in Bright Moon with her brought back the memories of calling her an enemy. These memories stung, but they were to be expected.

Catra stepped into the bedroom and shut the door behind her, leaving the guard outside and her and Adora alone.

Alone. Together.

Finally.

She tugged at her shirt uneasily. “Adora, I—”

—Adora slammed against her, lightning-fast and with a force that knocked them right to the carpet in front of the door. Her arms wrapped so tight around Catra’s neck she was suffocating her, but neither of them cared.

_Together, together._

“Don’t ever do that to me again, okay?” Adora’s breath ran ragged against Catra’s neck, sending bolts of shivering across the limited space between them. Every bit of her was tangled with the other girl. “I don’t care what you say, I’m allowed to be worried about you.”

The tension and exhaustion that plagued every second of Catra’s council was slowly beginning to leak upwards.

“I know.” Catra squeezed back. “I’m sorry, okay?” Her words were roughening. _Don’t even think about crying_ , she warned herself. “But it’s fine now. Everything—”

“I _missed you_. I was _terrified.”_ The emotions in Adora’s voice were gut-wrenching.

A part of Catra, located somewhere behind her stomach, felt pink with happiness that she was missed. The person she adored most in this world missed her and wanted her back… She could never get used to being loved. She never _wanted_ to get used to it.

They were both on the floor still. It took a minute for their breathing to grow steadier and for their hands to unclench.

Catra was the first to pull away, mainly because she wanted to look at Adora. This face, so familiar, so beautiful…

Globs of tears ran down Adora’s eyes and nose. _Gross, but still beautiful_.

Why on Etheria was she crying? Did she really miss Catra that bad?

“Hey, no crying,” Catra fake-scolded, pulling back. She hoped that she was covering up the mess of her own reaction well enough. “We saw each other just last night.”

Not for long enough, though. They couldn’t touch, she couldn’t hold her. It was cruel to be so close but far away.

“I thought it was the last time I was going to see you. I—” Adora began hiccupping, but she held her head down so she didn’t have to meet the other girl’s eyes. The shape of her body was turned downwards like a weight was strapped to the back of her neck. “Catra, everything is so weird here. I just can’t get used to this. I’m having nightmares again. I can’t sleep. I can’t do _anything_ without being terrified of what was going to happen to you.”

 _Oh man, she was really freaked out_. Catra knew what she was feeling, but she wanted to be the rock this time. She was done collapsing and blubbering onto Adora—she wanted to be there for Adora, like she couldn’t be before.

Catra would have time to fall apart later. She instead held Adora’s face in her hands and wiped her thumbs to clear away tears. “I’m here now, though.”

“But I left you. Again. I promised…” Adora’s hiccupping turned back into crying. Sobs shook her body. “I promised I’d never leave you, but I let them take you away. I can’t let you think—” her shoulders heaved, “—I don’t want you to think that I don’t love you.”

Was that what this is about? How was she even supposed to comfort something like that?

Catra moved her hands from Adora’s face to her shoulders and held her at arms-length to straighten her up. “Are you seriously worried about that right now? Do you _seriously_ think that I’d be upset at you for letting them take me?”

“I…” Adora’s chin trembled with the heaviness of her own anxiety.

“Look, I understand your feelings. It’s okay to be scared. Things are crazy right now.” Those words put Catra’s feelings too lightly. She gently dropped her grip. “I don’t know if I could say anything to make you feel better, but just…show yourself the same patience you show me, okay?”

That was the least she deserved.

It was an easy thing to do, to hold her, to put their foreheads together and breath until their rhythms synched. _Together again._ That’s what mattered.

After a few seconds of breathing, Adora sat back on the seat of her pants and wiped her nose. “Yeah. Sorry. It’s been kind of a hard couple of days.”

 _Yeah_. It really had been.

If this had been their Woods house, Catra wouldn’t even hesitate drawing the other girl into her arms and kissing her and feeling the whole world stop. It wasn’t as though she didn’t want to do that, but she had to hesitate.

This was Bright Moon. This was Adora’s home base. Being back here, seeing the towering ceilings and the Queen up close, it was a sickly reminder of everything Catra had done. The council was just that kind of reminder, too.

It brought her back to her worst times, and Catra was continuously trying to pull herself from the years where this kingdom was the war’s endgame. Back in their house, every time she swore to her she wouldn’t stay at Bright Moon when they got out, she was serious.

However, now that they were actually out, she just wanted to be with Adora no matter the cost. These conflicting feelings made her unbelievably tired in every way.

“Catra, can I tell you something?”

She pursed her lips at Adora. “What?”

“You seriously need a shower.”

Oh. A weird, giddy laugh struck Catra in her gut; when she tried to hide it, it just became a snort. Yeah, she hadn’t showered since they left the Whispering Woods. It must have been disgusting. The stress was too much for her to care about personal hygiene.

“Here.” Adora stood and offered out her hand, which was readily accepted. “Use my shower. You can just wear some of my clothes.”

 _Sure._ In an enemy kingdom. Wearing her enemy’s clothes. Not really, though, huh?

Before going into the bathroom, Catra made sure to touch her tail against Adora’s side, as though letting her know they still had each other. The gesture…she wanted to make sure that she _knew_.

The instant Catra stepped into the shower under the running water, she found herself missing Adora again. Washing all the dirt and stink from her scarred body just was a sick metaphor for their time alone together being over. She was rinsing the last reminder of her down the drain.

The sensation reminded her of how Adora’s kisses felt over her stomach and hips, and she had to sit down.

Just…let the water run over her. Through her hair, down the curves of her face, scarred fur of chest and legs. The bathroom even smelled like Adora’s soap. Nothing like the Fright Zone, too sweet and flowery. Not Catra.

Her hair didn’t even feel like hers when she rubbed bubbly shampoo through it. And the longer stripes around her lower stomach and back. The feeling of Adora’s hands there kept lingering in the back of her mind. _I hope that night wasn’t some crazy hallucination._

She closed her eyes. There was a worry, deep inside of her gut, that she’d lose herself completely being here. Everything she held herself to, the last _so many years_ she’d spent building herself up. A lot of that was built from anger and self-loathing, but some of it…

There had to be something inside of her that Adora loved, right? Catra wished she knew what that was.

There was a knock on the door, and she jumped. “Come in.” Catra sat up in the bottom of the tub.

Adora entered, a stack of clothes in her hands. She’d put on her day clothes and brushed her hair back into its usual ponytail. Her eyes sparkled, and she set what she brought on the edge of the sink. “I hope they fit. Are you…doing okay in there?”

Feeling weirdly self-conscious, Catra covered her chest with her arms. Adora probably couldn’t see her over the height of the tub. But still. “If I said I wasn’t, would you offer to help me shower?” Her words were meant to be teasing.

They met eyes, but something made Catra shrink even further inside of herself. The teasing was completely unconvincing. Maybe the steam from the shower was covering up her twisted expression, but she really wasn’t doing okay.

To no surprise, Adora knew that. She also seemed to sense the other girl’s self-consciousness; when she went to sit down next to the edge of the shower tub, she avoided looking directly at her.

“Is there anything you want to talk about?” she asked.

Droplets speckled against the scarred tissue of Catra’s thigh. “I don’t know.”

For a moment, nothing but the sound of the shower.

Adora began fiddling with her ponytail. “Was it something I did?”

When she asked that, Catra knew she couldn’t wallow in silence like she wanted. That was the whole idea of being in a relationship, she supposed: having someone to talk through your troubles with. But it was _hard_ , and she wanted to complain.

“You didn’t do anything wrong,” Catra responded carefully, turning her body outwards and finally facing the other girl. “Being here just reminds me of how much of a destructive person I was to you.” _Among other things._

At that point, they were actually facing each other. Only the wall of the tub was between them, and they were hardly inches apart. The window above the bathroom sink had fogged up, adding an odd sense of privacy.

It was just the two of them in a closed bedroom, and while Catra was naked in the shower, she didn’t feel as exposed as she could’ve been.

She propped her arms up on the edge of the tub and leaned out, hair dripping water onto the floor. Her nose touched to Adora’s cheek. “I’ll be fine, okay?”

A small puff of air was released when Adora leaned into the touch. “Am I still allowed to kiss you?”

“After what we did back in the Woods, I should hope you’re allowed to kiss me.”

Adora turned bright red at the memory, and her lips scrunched like she was trying to bite back a smile. “Should I apologize for that?”

“No.” Hopefully the look in Catra’s eyes said everything her words didn’t. If there was one thing she could take with her from their time there, it would be _that_ memory. Her head tilted to the side so their mouths were almost close enough to taste. “But I’m hoping we get the chance to make new memories sometime.”

New memories?

Adora knew _exactly_ what she meant. If it was possible, her face turned even a darker shade of red. She tried to say something, but Catra interrupted with a kiss to the corner of her mouth.

“Let me finish my shower. I’ll be out in a sec.”

It was a cue for Adora to leave. Not because Catra wanted her to go, but because she wasn’t sure she’d be able to finish her shower alone. When Adora stood to leave, they made eye contact that lasted a few seconds to heavy. Then she was gone.

 _That girl…_ Catra melted down the side of the tub and stuck her legs up on the wall. _Resisting her was not going to be easy._ How was she supposed to go about her day knowing that they reached their goal and now had the rest of their lives ahead of them?

The thought of their future made her insides squirm. _Their future._ _Their future. Together. For the rest of their lives._

Was this something she deserved? If not, how could she _earn_ it?

Catra got out of the tub, dried off quickly with a spare towel, and threw the borrowed clothes on.

“Adora,” she nearly tripped out of the bathroom. “Are you still here?”

Adora was sitting cross-legged on her bed, flipping through some papers, and was startled to see the other girl rushing out into the bedroom with such a frantic. She put the papers away. “What? What’s wrong?”

Inwardly, Catra wished she’d dried her hair better, because she was dripping everywhere. “Adora, I need to tell you something, too.”

“Are you okay?” She stood.

A type of urgency pulsed through Catra’s veins. She knew where it wanted to take her—but she restrained herself, focusing only on what she wanted to convey to Adora. “Adora.” She stepped up close and held her by the shoulders. “Adora.”

Adora put her hands over the other girl’s. “What? Why are you saying my name like that?”

They were close. Catra couldn’t really smell her like she usually could, though, because now they smelled the same. The same soap and shampoo, the same clothes. It surrounded her, in her nose and on her hands.

At one point in her life, she would’ve resented something like this. But then—

Catra moved her hands from shoulders to the sides of her partner’s face. “ _Adora,”_ she repeated the name again and it tasted like sugar. “Are you okay with this?”

“With…?”

“With me being in your life now. You already have a life here, with your friends and your kingdom.”

One of Adora’s eyebrows cocked and she smiled a bit in confusion. “You know that I need you just as much as them. Why are you asking me if I’m okay with it?”

“Because I want...” The butterflies made Catra feel weirdly impulsive, and she really wanted to just spill her guts out to her. She held onto Adora’s face with her hands as gently as she could. “I want to be with you for the rest of our lives.”

Adora’s perfect mouth opened in surprise, and her cheeks turned as rosy as her lips. “I thought…that was the plan?”

“No, I mean, I want to _be_ with you.” How can Catra make her realize exactly what she was saying? She hoped her expression would say enough. “I’ve tried the ‘being without you’ thing, and it didn’t work out. So…maybe we…”

Adora was biting her lip, grinning like an idiot, and leaned her cheek into Catra’s palm. “Are you insinuating we aren’t already in a relationship?”

“No, I mean—”

“Because what we did in the cabin wasn’t really something just _friends_ do.”

It was Catra’s turn to flush, and a suppressed laugh turned into again into a snort. “Okay, that’s not what I mean, and you know it.”

“Then tell me. Use your words, kitty.”

“Oh, don’t call me kitty.” Catra leaned forward. “Off limits.”

“It wasn’t off-limits the other night.”

“ _Oh my god.”_ To shut her up, she pressed them together in the first kiss they’d shared since leaving the Woods. “You’re never going to let me live any of that down, are you? All I wanted to say,” she kissed her again, for a second longer, “was that I want to be able to kiss you and to love you for the rest of our lives.”

The kisses seemed to be making Adora feel a little drunk, based on the fuzzy look in her eyes. “You’ve told me this before.” She put her arms around Catra’s waist. “Are you feeling okay?”

Feeling okay?

Catra had never felt like this before. It might’ve been the aftermath of all the bad emotions, but all she could think about was Adora. Everything about her. It was a war inside of her brain, debating how far she wanted to take this conversation.

Her blood rushed hot. “I’m feeling fine,” she promised Adora. “I just need to make sure you know.”

“You can remind me as often as you want.”

“I will, thank you.” Catra, stepping back, knew that her tail was swishing back and forth and giving away her happiness. “And if you ever get sick of me, you can just say so.”

“It doesn’t really sound like you’ll go willingly.” The tone of Adora’s voice…was this a game? She had on that stupid look, the one where she thought she was being smooth but was really just being a dork. She’d walked over to her desk and leaned against it.

 _Is she trying to tempt me??_ Catra wanted to double over and cackle and how much of an idiot this person was, but everything was interrupted.

Two loud knocks and then the door flew open.

“Adora!” Glimmer burst in, cape tangled over one of her shoulders. She was breathing heavily like she was running. “Have you looked outside? Have you seen it?”

 _Oh thank god we weren’t doing anything,_ Catra thought. If the embarrassment hadn’t killed her, she might’ve just jumped off the balcony right then and there.

Adora’s face seemed to be thinking the same thing. “Oh hey, Glimmer. Seen what?” She wiped some of the drips of water from her collarbone that’d fallen from Catra’s wet hair.

Luckily, Glimmer didn’t know what she almost walked in on; she immediately ran past them and out the curtains covering the balcony. They only looking at each other briefly before shrugging and following.

Nothing immediately stood out? The view was nice, overlooking the city. Colors of the warmest hues blanket every corner of the civilian city, and for the first time, Catra was beginning to understand exactly how massive of a kingdom Bright Moon was. _And what it meant to have tried and conquer it._

It was cold out, though, and snow packed uncomfortably between her toes. She shivered and stepped up to the edge of the railing with Adora.

“What are we looking at?” Adora asked, but Glimmer put her finger to her mouth.

Somehow, Catra understood before Adora did. She backed up several footsteps fast, almost too fast. There was a sound coming from the city beneath them, not as loud as a roar, but…music. Laughter.

This wasn’t the yule celebration.

Adora leaned over the edge of the balcony, and like a crashing wave, the city lit up in noise. They must’ve seen her. _The great She-Ra returning from the dead_. Although individual people were the size of ants, they all seemed to notice the movement on the princess’s balcony.

Were they waiting?

A crowd—thousands of Bright Moon civilians—with their heads turned up towards the castle, waiting for the Princess of Power. Ribbons, flags, banners waving.

“Word got out last night,” Glimmer explained, holding her hand up to wave happily at the crowd below, and nudged the other girl to do the same. “The festival for yule is still going on, so the party is even bigger now.”

Adora’s face puckered almost unreadable. Her wave down to the city was shy. “They’re celebrating…my return?”

“Of course! The party wasn’t complete without you, and now that you’re here…”

She stared down at the crowd, who had quieted only a little, and smiled despite them not being able to see the smile from so far away. “Does this mean I have to go down and celebrate with them?”

“Well, you don’t _have_ to…” The words trailed off in a suggestion instead of a requirement. “The celebrations are going on all week until Yule on Saturday, but…” But they knew. And they knew what came next.

Both Glimmer and Adora looked back at Catra, who was had her arms crossed against the cold near the door. She knew exactly what was unsaid between them, so she _said_ it.

“I can hang back here,” Catra offered, trying to keep her tone neutral. “I wouldn’t want to taint the She-Ra’s reputation by showing my face in public.”

This remark was slightly more scathing than she intended, and she immediately regretting making Adora flinch. _It was true, though_ , she wanted to defend.

“She’s got a point.” Glimmer pursed her lips in a sort-of sympathetic manner to her friend. “I don’t know if they know _she’s_ here.”

“She _is_ here,” Catra snapped back. She was really unable to have a cool tone with the princess and didn’t feel it was necessary to withhold this particular comment. “And I was going to stay back anyways. I don’t need to be told how much it sucks for me to be alive.”

Adora stepped away from the edge of the balcony. “Catra…”

 _Those eyes, I can’t have an attitude looking at those eyes._ Huffing in annoyance, Catra crossed her arms tighter and looked away. “It’s fine, guys. Really. I’ll stay. Go down and enjoy the party.”

A small cloud passed overhead, and the shadow was much colder than the rest of the air. All three of them shivered in its darkness before passing. It was winter, after all, and they weren’t exactly dressed for snow.

While Glimmer and Adora exchanged glances, Catra just turned to go back inside. Her fur was still damp from the shower and it felt like it was going to freeze and break off. _So much for getting to spend quality time with Adora today._

She was upset about it but couldn’t complain. This is how it was going to be. All she did was go back into the bathroom and use her towel to rub her cold, exposed hair.

What else did she expect? Nothing, this was exactly what she expected. And she had to be okay with it. Going back to living in this shadow. She _knew_ that Adora loved and valued her, but of course…she had to put her duties as She-Ra before anything else. That’s how it goes when you’re selfless.

From inside of the bathroom, Catra heard some quiet talking from the main bedroom, a pause, and then the sound of the door closing. It all took place over just a minute, and after it, she thought she was alone.

Catra finished drying off, stretched an ache out of her scarred thigh, and went back into the main portion of the bedroom. So much purple. And crystals. And purple crystals. And…Adora?

“Adora,” she yawned, trying not to act too shocked. “You’re not going down with your best friends?” _Maybe I should stop using those words so derisively._

“Not today,” Adora answered. She walked from where she’d been at the front of the room to the back where Catra was. There wasn’t the usual resolution in her body language, though. “I just want to be here with you. There’s time for going out later.”

 _She just wants to be with me_? Catra was having a hard time not being startled. Adora chose _her_ over her friends, even if just for a day. And she seemed very decisive about this. She was sure about Catra. _I’m never going to get used to this._

“I don’t want us to be interrupted again,” Catra joked to cover up how stupid-happy she was. “Are you sure we’re not going to get anyone kicking your door down?”

“No. It might happen.” At least Adora was honest. She held one of her hands out. “I don’t usually find myself alone here.”

“Hm.” Catra took the hand offered to her and brought it to her mouth. “We can put a sign on the door.”

“We could use your room.”

She had to pause and do a mental double-take at Adora. Several things threw her off about that.

“It’s not really _my_ room,” Catra looked at the floor. “It doesn’t feel like, at least. And I wasn’t quite thinking about that type of alone time, but okay.”

They snickered a little to themselves before bringing both hands intertwined between them. Chest to hands to chest. Catra could feel the callouses across Adora’s knuckles and the little scar on the back of her wrist she’d got when they were younger.

She held Adora’s hands against her gently and lifted them once again to her lips. “You honestly don’t have to stay with me. I understand you have princess stuff to do.”

“It’s just a party. There will be more we can go to.”

_We._

God, Catra loved this girl. She loved her so much, every inch of her to the moons and back. Everything about her kept her warm from her toes right to the tips of her ears. It was so easy and felt so right to hold her there, close enough to feel and to touch and to just _be._

“I’m glad we still get this.” Adora got near enough to kiss but didn’t close the distance. “I love hearing you purr.”

She was purring?

Catra realized she was indeed purring, as well as letting her tail wave around like a kitten. There was one person who could ever make her feel like this, and she was going to be with that person for the rest of her life.

“You are such a dork.” Catra shoved Adora playfully, relishing in the twinkle of her eyes meant just for her. “Were you always this stupid? I can’t remember.”

Adora stuck her tongue out and blew a raspberry. “Better a dork than a jerk.”

“Take that back!” Catra pounced, grabbing the other girl around her waist and swinging them around before they toppled sideways onto one of the poufs. They landed on their sides, laughing and clinging on to one another.

The pouf wasn’t big enough for the both of them, so Catra ended falling to the side with Adora half on top of her.

“I don’t think I said it back today.” Adora touched a loose strand of hair behind her ear, and when she smiled, her nose crinkled. “That I love you.”

Catra’s heart swelled so full she was worried it would burst. “What? I’m sorry, I don’t think I heard you.”

“I said that I love you, stupid.”

“A little louder—”

“ _Catra_.” Adora flopped her whole weight on top of Catra, peppering her face with kisses that smelled like morning breath. She followed the laughter as the other girl scrabbled to get away. “Since when did you get so cheesy? Did the time magic scramble your brains?”

 _This feeling of total adoration was what scrambled her brain._ In another lifetime, Catra would’ve resented the fact that Adora owned every cell in her body. She would’ve resented the fact that Catra was living for no other reason than to see her smile.

But then? She didn’t care. In fact, this love overshadowed everything else she could feel. It was freeing, releasing in the most insane way. Her love felt like the color blue—blue like Adora’s eyes, like the cloudless sky they’d watched together in the Whispering Woods.

“What’s that face for?” Adora snuggled into Catra’s chest, putting her chin up on a hand to be able to still look at her. “I haven’t seen you look like that in a while.” The hand that wasn’t under her chin had reached around and took Catra’s own.

This…this is what she’d fight for.

Catra, pinned kind of uncomfortably on the floor next to the pouf, stared down at the girl on her chest. She could get her all to herself, but that would’ve been greedy.

“Hey.” Catra sat up, forcing the other girl to sit up with her. She nudged Adora’s shoulder with her nose in a gentle gesture.

“Hm?”

“I want you to go with Glimmer and Bow to the festival.”

Adora sat back, blinking in surprise. “Wait, what? You do?”

 _Don’t look so surprised_. This was a difficult choice for Catra, too, but it was one she had to make. This was them building a new lift together, and the foundation had to selfless. It had to be.

Shaking her head just a little, Catra tried her best to sound encouraging. “This is your world, Adora. They’ve missed you. They’re all here for _you_. You can’t make decisions based on me.”

“…But—”

“Obviously I’m not going to force you to go if you don’t want to, but I know you. You love your friends, and this is the first time you’ve seen them in a month. Go have _fun_.”

The crinkle to Adora’s nose seemed like she was considering the offer but still hesitant to take. “What would you do all day?”

“I don’t know, but I’ll figure something out.” Catra stood, stretching her tail. Her thoughts were very _not_ selfish and it came slightly unnaturally to her. It was no secret she didn’t really like Glimmer and Bow, but she knew how much Adora did.

“Catra…”

“Do you want to go or not?” The question wasn’t meant to be harsh, and it didn’t come across that way either.

The way that Adora acted selfless despite what she wanted always drove Catra crazy, so she wasn’t into playing games. If she wanted to go to the festival, she needed to go. It wasn’t just something fun at that point; she _needed_ to.

Luckily, Adora seemed to understand this. She crossed her arms and looked away. “I _do_ want to go. I just feel bad.”

“Shut up, Adora. There’s no reason to feel bad. I’m a grown woman, I’ll be fine.” It wasn’t as though Catra was going to take no for an answer anyways. Maybe it was her way of being selfless for letting Adora be selfish.

Without waiting for another answer, Catra went over the bedroom door, opened it, and leaned out the doorway. By some great fortune, Glimmer was still in sight. She was visible just around the curve of the hallway, too far away to hear but close enough to see she was chatting with their third friend. Bow.

 _I hope I don’t regret this._ “Hey!” Catra shouted down the hall.

The two stopped, started, and looked her way. Obvious confusion was visible on their faces from even that far away.

Catra wasn’t about to tell them “come here” or anything, so she rolled her eyes and pulled herself back into the bedroom, counting on those two dingbats to come back in themselves.

“This isn’t very like you.” The tone of Adora’s voice was a little sassy, and she had her arms crossed to watch Catra go flop herself on the bed. “You wouldn’t rather spend the day together?”

“Of course I’d rather, I’m not dumb. You’re far more interesting than any trouble I could get into. But…” Catra wasn’t certain the right way to form these thoughts into words for the other girl. “You’re your own person and I couldn’t live with myself if I was in the way of that.”

The sentiment was heavy on her tongue, but it didn’t hurt as her words often did. It made Adora get this look in her eyes, too—A look that Catra probably would’ve pounced on in any other circumstance

The door opened and both Glimmer and Bow stuck their heads in suspiciously.

“You yelled,” Glimmer accused, squinting at the person on the bed before looking over at her friend. “Is everything okay?”

Everything’s okay. Catra was too busy training her feelings down to even be sarcastic, but luckily Adora answered for her.

“I want to go down to the celebrations with you guys.”

Street food, live music, face painting, confetti… It all seemed right up Adora’s ally, now that she’d learned how to be less uptight and rigid all the time. It was sweet, seeing her like the simpler things in life, even though Catra didn’t entirely share that sentiment.

The only reason that Catra would want to go at all would be to see Adora happy.

When Adora said that, both Glimmer and Bow’s faces lit up.

“Really?” Bow shook his fists in excitement. “There’s an eating contest today that I wanted to go to _so badly.”_

Glimmer’s eyes narrowed briefly at Catra, who was still lounging on the bed. “Is she—I mean, are _you_ coming?”

“Nah, I’m staying back. Probably going to raid the kitchens, cause some mischief. The usual.”

This answer seemed to satisfy them, and Adora smiled gratefully before turning to her wardrobe. She rummaged for a second before pulling out an outdoor cloak (that clearly hadn’t been worn in a year). It hung a bit off her skinnier frame. “Let’s do this.”

Immediately, Glimmer and Bow jumped back up into the air in excitement. They surrounded her with loud words of excitement for a few minutes—more than Catra could handle—before Adora began being drug off by both hands.

The whole interaction, from Catra deciding to encourage her to go and her actually leaving the room, took barely two minutes.

“I’ll be back later today, Catra,” Adora promised, and they made eye contact.

 _I’ll miss you._ Catra flicked her tail in a wave goodbye and watched the door close between her and her partner.

The silence, for the first time in a long time, was more comfortable than not. It was empty, but maybe that wasn’t a bad thing. Catra allowed herself to feel the steady beat of her chest, the blood flowing to and from her fingertips. To just be.

Just be.

_Just be her._


	5. Girlfriends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Character development? In my story? It's more likely than you think.  
> (Also this chapter is a little shorter than average, but it's okay)

Life would be easier if Catra stayed a selfish person. She’d get what she wanted, and she wouldn’t care what that meant for others. Unfortunately, that’s not how life worked, and that’s not how she wanted others to see her anymore. And like it or not…what she truly wanted was just to see Adora happy.

If that meant letting her go off at a party in the city while Catra wandered Bright Moon alone, that’s what it meant.

After Adora left, Catra stayed in the room for just a little longer. She allowed herself to look around and absorb the situation. This room wasn’t quite in her taste, and it didn’t seem like it was in Adora’s either, but the little things spoke reminders of her. The stack of hair ties on the vanity, the hand-drawn diagrams and maps pinned up to the opposite wall, the twenty pairs of worn white socks that never seemed to make it into the laundry hamper.

The sword propped up against the doorframe. Unused for so long.

Catra tried and failed to keep the flashbacks from hitting her. Anger and distrust and—and the feeling of release when she finally broke down on the bedroom floor in the Woods. Piercing her own skin with her claws, sobbing, wanting her bones to collapse inside of her until she didn’t feel that pain anymore.

The way Adora held her. Tight enough to pull her back together. Tight enough to tell her what she felt without using words. With all that pain stripped away, when Catra found herself raw and bare and more vulnerable than she’d ever been, Adora was finally able to see her true feelings. Intentions. What she wanted.

And Catra got that. She got all of it, and more than she ever thought she deserved. They went from enemies to—what? What were they?

Hell if she knew.

Stomach growling, Catra hopped off the bed and left the room.

Her guard (maybe it was a different one, they all looked similar covered in armor) was waiting there for her, spear in hand.

“I’m starving. Where are the kitchens?”

Wordlessly, the guard began walking with the other girl following suit.

They traveled through hall after similar hall, bathed in light and massive portraits of royals and great battle scene. Such a difference from the Fright Zone, which was all steaming pipes and shadows. How long would it take to get used to the yin to her old home’s yang?

“Breakfast is taken in the Dining Hall,” the guard said, coming to a halt before a door and opening it. “The butlers will pass your orders onto the kitchen.”

Catra peered in to see a massive chandeliered room set up in dozens of tables. Smells of syrup and crispy breads made her mouth water, but there were…so many people. Who were all these people? Royals? Staff?

At a table near the entrance sat two women, laughing over a shared platter of flapjacks. They looked close to visual opposites, with one being sharp angles and short hair fluffed to the nape of her neck. The other was in lavender robes, long flowing purple hair and a softer face to her.

These women were familiar to Catra, but she didn’t linger too long on them, and instead uncomfortably shuffled to a single table in the corner of the room. Even the corner was too bright _. I’m so out of place here_ , she thought. Her hair was still half-burnt off from the explosion and scars covering the right side of her face. She wasn’t princessly at all.

“Ma’am,” a curly-headed waitstaff appeared at the table, acknowledging the royal guard politely before pulling a smile. “Happy morning to you. Interested in breakfast?”

 _This would be so much better if Adora were here._ Catra wondered if she made the right decision.

“Um.” She felt her ears slowly flattening. “I don’t know. Something with meat?”

The waitstaff beamed. “Our breakfast meat pies are a favorite of the She-Ra. I will pull some of those for you.”

Adora’s favorite?

“Any beverage?”

So many questions, Catra didn’t like being waited upon. She much rather would sneak into the back of the kitchens, steal some food, and run away into a dark corner to eat while waiting for Adora to get back. That wasn’t really an option, though, since she had a guard following her everywhere. For now, she had to be…normal.

“Coffee. Thanks.” Catra pulled her feet up onto her chair and wrapped her arms and tail around her knees while the waitstaff left with her order.

It was too _bright_ in there. Too many people making too much noise.

The women at the table she noticed earlier were definitely princesses, she could gather that much. Laughter from that direction was so loud Catra could hear it from as far away as she was.

The purple one leaned over their plates to touch the other girl’s cheek, and for a moment, Catra was looking in a mirror.

The affection in her eyes, the gentleness of the touch she used. And the way the other girl looked at her. It was obvious they felt the way about each other as Catra and Adora felt.

Maybe this type of feeling wasn’t so entirely alien to the world. It was just alien to Catra.

She sat, watching from the corner of her eye with an unusual curiosity. It was more fascinating than anything. The Fright Zone discouraged public displays of affection, so she wasn’t used to seeing people act like this out in the open.

When Catra’s breakfast came, she was immediately distracted. This was Adora’s favorite? She took a bite of the meat pie and it flooded her mouth with flavor. Oh, she’s got good taste. It hit her empty stomach like gold, and it took less than thirty seconds to finish the entire thing. And the sausages covered in gravy, and strips of bacon, and baked poultry kabobs—

She didn’t care what she looked like; Catra used silverware in both hands to shovel it all into her mouth. So much better than fruit. For the first time, and for a reason that wasn’t directly related to Adora, she didn’t regret coming to Bright Moon. This held no candle to ration bars.

When the meal slowed down and food ran out, Catra allowed herself to sit back and breathe for a minute while keeping an eye out at the room around her. The two princesses had finished their meals and were just…holding hands across the table?

Catra took a sip of coffee and watched. Holdings hands with Adora over a meal looks nice. What would she think?

Who were these princesses, and how did they know of this…feeling?

She was full-on ignoring her guard at this point. The two princesses stood up from the chair, thanked the waitstaff, and left the Dining Hall holding hands. For some reason she didn’t quite understand, Catra followed.

It would’ve been so much easier to sneak around if there wasn’t a guard walking steadily behind her. She tried to stay undetected and to the wall, but the guard just kept walking in the middle of the hallways. It was basically a miracle at that point that the princesses she was following didn’t notice.

They walked down the opposite hall, passed a set of large closed doors that smelled like smoke and metal, and then—A mahogany archway.

And a library.

Catra slowed nearly to a halt when she entered. She’d never enjoyed schooling at the Fright Zone, or reading books, or basically anything like that in general, but this room was something she never expected to see. Towering ceilings that peaked in lights that exposed the entire sky. Shimmering curtains fell from the skylights like waterfalls, reflecting against thousands of shelves of books. Shelves upon shelves. Stacks. Stairs winding into four different levels of the library, nooks with chairs and beanbags, and fireplaces radiating warmth.

Adora would probably enjoy this more than I would, she thought, breathing in the smell of old paper. It reminded her of the study in the basement of their Whispering Woods house. The fireplaces, too… She might not want to read in here, but the thought of napping in front of a fireplace with Adora in this type of peace was so alluring.

This seemed to be the idea of the princesses she’d followed in, too.

After just a moment of reorienting herself, Catra pulled her attention back to the target and found the girls in a separate, smaller level that was sectioned off by a collection of scrolls. There was a fireplace in this section, too, as well as a collection of comfy-looking seats.

The purple-haired princess was reading a scroll silently while the other was curled up at her side, playing with her fingers. Something that Catra would do to Adora. She wasn’t sure how she felt about seeing this. Her intentions weren’t creepy at all, but there had been a pestering confusion in the back of her stomach.

What are we, what are we. What is our future?

“Are you just going to watch us like a creep,” the white-haired princess didn’t even open her eyes, “or do you have something to say?”

Catra jumped. She thought she was being sneaky—but yeah, maybe watching was rude. Her tail was pricked with anxiety and guilt at being caught sneaking.

“I’m not a creep.” She crossed her arms tight over her chest and tilted her ears back defensively while stepping into the nook.

The princess opened her eyes and sat up, shooting daggers with her eyes. “So you didn’t stalk us while we were eating breakfast and follow us in here?”

“I—”

“We’ve heard you’re one of us now, but I don’t think it’s that simple.”

“Netossa,” the purple woman scolded gently, closing her scroll. “She’s had enough trouble the last few days. If she’s with Adora, we can trust her.”

With Adora?

Catra’s nerves spiked. “Spare me the lecture. I’m leaving.” She turned to storm out, passed the guard who was still at her back.

But then—

“Wait right there, Catra.” The woman, Netossa, put one of her hands on her hips from where she still sat.

Then the other one spoke, “You followed us here. What did you want to ask?” Her voice was a little softer than the other woman’s, but not too sugary.

Catra was grateful she didn’t seem to pity her like the Queen did. Her arms remained crossed, though. “…Nothing.” Her twitching tail gave away a bit of the confusion she was feeling. Then why are you still standing here??

“Is this about Adora?”

Her tail stuck straight out, bristled in shock. “What? Who told you?? Did she—??”

“Relax, jeez. Sit down before you have a heart attack.”

I don’t need to sit down. I should just leave. This is dumb.

Catra sat. The chair was way too fluffy, and she sank all the way down until she felt like a piece of origami. But the fireplace was nice.

This is dumb, she told herself, and her arms stayed crossed, but… Maybe this was a way of untangling some of the confusion she felt. Of course, at some point she had to be ready to talk with Adora about all that’s on her mind, but at this point it was all weird emotions and a constant buzz of anxiety. Nothing to form words yet.

The other two girls didn’t say anything, but patiently watched Catra as she unclenched her stance.

“Are you guys…princesses?” she asked.

“We’ve fought before,” the purple one responded, but had a little smile on like she didn’t have any hatred. “I’m Spinerella, and this is my wife.”

“Netossa.”

Wife?

Catra thought back to their first big battle, the one she almost won at Bright Moon before everyone started glowing rainbows and washed their entire Horde fleet out with princess magic.

Disgruntle, she flared her nostrils and looked away. “Sorry for that.” And then she looked back again. “You don’t seem to want to kill me as much as other’s that I’ve run across here.”

There was a sarcastic roll to Netossa’s eyes. “If you want a sappy speech about how people change, you’ve come to the wrong girls. You’re here in front of us right now, and we haven’t killed you. So chill out.”

This surprised Catra just a bit, and she found herself trying to argue. “But you have to hate me, right? I am the—I was the bad guy.”

“Bad guys don’t eat an eight-course breakfast before stalking someone, and bad guys don’t fall in love with princesses.”

If she hadn’t gotten herself stuck in the couch, she would’ve flow off of it. She hissed loudly, but it was lost in the sound of the fireplace.

“Keep your voice down,” she growled, knowing her claws were extended, but the anger melted quickly away. She wasn’t sure how they knew, but they did. Her ears flicked in agitation. “I don’t want the whole goddamn kingdom to know. How did—how did you know?”

There was an unexpected feeling of relief of not having to hide something for once in her life.

Spinerella, who was mostly quiet, put her arm around the other girl’s shoulders and patted her comfortingly. “Adora talked about you a lot, you know. Before.”

Before… Although she tried not to, Catra winced. “Probably about how much she hated me.”

“Sometimes,” Spinerella laughed, “but take it from people who know what love looks like, she was just lost. And angry.”

The both of us were.

“And come on, kid.” Netossa crossed her legs and leaned into her wife’s arm, looking amused. “You weren’t staring at us because you like us. You’ve never seen people express affection like this before, have you?”

Yikes.

Catra was almost offended at how easily she was read. So much for being mysterious and good at hiding her emotions. Some part of her was delighted that Adora obviously liked her for that long, but she really tried not letting any more vulnerability leak out around people she didn’t know.

She crossed her arms again. “…This is dumb.”

They were quiet for a few moments, in which the two princesses were having a silent conversation with just their eyes. Eventually, Spinerella shook her head and stood with a smile.

“Why don’t you come to our wing with us?” she offered.

“Yeah,” Netossa agreed. “I can fix whatever happened to your hair, too.”

“Hey.” Catra reached around to the back of her head where her hair…yeah it was not super cute. Maybe she was lucky Adora hadn’t made fun of her more for it.

Man, she really didn’t want to go along with two strange princesses back to their castle wing where they’ll chop her hair off and most likely end up making her talk about her feelings. Repeated in her head, none of that sounded really desirable.

Catra scowled into the fireplace. “…What’s a wife?”

The two girls blinked. Looked at each other.

A crease appeared between Netossa’s eyebrows. “You don’t know what a wife is?”

Silence.

Then she burst out laughing. Way louder than should be allowed in the library. It echoed off the high ceilings and made Catra furiously red.

“‘Tossa,” Spinerella scolded, standing and putting her hands on both her hips. It was honestly pretty intimidating. “Do _not_ laugh at her. She hasn’t had the privilege of growing up in a loving environment. It’s not her fault.”

Her. She. Catra wasn’t sure if she appreciated them talking about her like she wasn’t sitting right there in front of them, but in some weird way, she was glad she wasn’t getting blamed for this. For not knowing things like that. She knew she loved Adora and wanted to spend the rest of her life with her, but that nagging twinge in her gut didn’t budge. What if this was her chance to fix that? To put in that extra effort and show Adora she’s trying to be a better person—for her?

For Adora.

It was a bit of a struggle standing from the fluffy chair, but Catra kept her dignity when doing so. “Fine,” she said, trying to sound grateful. “Cut all my hair off, I don’t care.”

“You sound so excited.”

“I’m trying, okay??”

Netossa laughed, and Spinerella seemed to smile in response to that. The way they interacted, almost fluidly like each movement of one was in response to the other. Catra almost envied it. She wanted that kind of closeness with Adora, the reassurance of one another’s presence. Of course she felt it, but…she would never fully believe that she got this. That she deserved it.

Deserving it was a common theme in her head, she realized.

The princess’s wing wasn’t unlike the rest of the castle. Bright, sparkly, pastels. They’d clearly put their own touches on it as well, which was interesting to see.

The first area Catra was led into must’ve been a sort of living room. _Not as nice as the house in the Whispering Woods_ , she thought bitterly, even though this one was much bigger and more modern. It had a couch in front of floor-to ceiling windows, and a view overlooking the water. It felt like every window Catra looked out of held a beautiful scene—such contrast with the Fright Zone. She was grateful to not have to feel that kind of anger again.

“Don’t look so worried.” Spinerella put a comforting hand on Catra’s shoulder, startling her from the bad memories. “She’s been doing our hair for years.”

_Do they think I’m really worried about that?_

Catra had to force down so many uncomfortable feelings, both her personal space being invaded and her personal _thoughts_ at risk for being invaded. She wasn’t about to discuss her relationship with complete strangers, but… This was the effort she had to make. She owed this much to the people in her life, to make this effort.

She crossed her arms and looked away. “Where am I sitting?” The last time she’d had her hair cut was when she did it herself with a dagger years before.

Netossa, who’d disappeared briefly into a side room, had come back with a duffel of supplies. The front half of her own hair was pinned back off her forehead, almost like Adora wears hers.

 _I wonder what Adora’s doing right now._ Catra didn’t like how hollow she felt without her partner. But this was fine. Almost a good thing. They had to learn how to exist independently otherwise their lives were going to be nearly as unhealthy as they were before—and she had to learn from this, as hard as it was.

Netossa sat Catra down in front of a large vanity that had pictures taped all over the mirror portion. Each one was clearly of those two princesses in various stages of life. It was kind of sweet. It made Catra wish that her and Adora had pictures of each other.

At least this was something to look at as Netossa started on Catra’s hair. She was grateful that they didn’t want to blabber like she’d thought. For a few minutes, the snipping of scissors and the buzz of the razor was all in her skull at that moment.

After a bit, one picture in particular had piqued her interest.

“Why are you dressed like this?” she asked, pointing a finger at the photo.

From her spot on the couch with a book, Spinerella turned her head, saw the picture in question, and smiled up to her eyes. “That’s our wedding!”

Scissors stopped cutting for a moment as Netossa laughed nostalgically. “It feels like yesterday, doesn’t it, Spinny? You looked so beautiful in your dress.”

“Not as beautiful as you did with that veil your grandmother made.”

_Blegh, don’t flirt in front of me._

Catra fought the urge to cross her arms or roll her eyes or do something disrespectful. Weirdly, her first instinct was to be jealous of them—but that wasn’t right.

She had someone who loved her like that. She got to make good memories. And in ten years, they can look back and smile at how beautiful they were and make others around them uncomfortable with flirting.

She looked down, almost embarrassed. “What’s…a wedding?”

The scissors stopped again. No doubt they were exchanged glances behind her back.

Catra pushed down the urge to run. “Do Adora and I have to do a wedding?”

Another moment of silence, then a sound that must’ve been Spinerella standing off her couch.

“Don’t you dare laugh at her,” she tutted, almost inaudibly, at the other princess.

Netossa coughed. Continued working on Catra’s hair. “A wedding is, like, a big party you have when you get married to someone. Do you know what marriage is?”

Catra snapped her head around but nearly got her ear sliced off with the buzzer in the process. She wanted to growl, but the anger wasn’t anger. It was just embarrassment. She turned back around, ears drooping.

“Don’t get all wild on me when I’ve got blades in my hands, kid. It’s fine if you don’t know what all that stuff is. Spinny is better at explaining, anyways.”

 _I don’t want to talk about my feelings._ Catra’s first thought was again to run. To get as far away as she can. To bury each one of her emotions until no one could ever hurt her again.

But Adora won’t hurt her. She wouldn’t, and she won’t.

It took every bit of strength she had to stay in the chair, let Netossa keep cutting her hair and the other woman bring out a book from one of their shelves.

Spinerella pulled a chair up right next to Catra’s, too close for comfort, close enough to smell a sort of perfume that made her want to sneeze. The book she had in her arms was a photo album, which she set open on the vanity.

Pictures of vases, blue skies, crowds of smiling people, confetti, fancy clothes, white picket lattices crawling with flowers and vines…

It wasn’t too interesting to Catra, but the way that the two princesses seemed to gush meant that this day was really special to them.

“A marriage is a union between two people who love each other more than anything else in the whole world,” Spinerella explained, looking up at her wife with fondness in her expression. “It means that you want to be with them for the rest of your lives, and you’re committed to staying by them and supporting one another.”

“Yeah,” Netossa agreed, trading her buzzer for a small comb, “and a wedding is just a party to celebrate the marriage.”

As she got her hair cut, burnt weight fell from Catra’s neck. “Do we…have to get married? I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

“You don’t have to. Some people choose to, and that’s great, but if you’d rather stay girlfriends that’s fine too.”

 _Girlfriends?_ Is that what…her and Adora were? Girlfriends? Dating?

A nervous laugh escaped Catra’s throat. How was she supposed to keep up with this? Were there rules? Why was this making her so anxious?? She was so happy— _so_ happy—with Adora, but she had no idea that there were so many little things involved in being in a relationship. What if Adora wasn’t happy because Catra wasn’t doing it right?

“I’m going to nick your ear if you keep fidgeting,” Netossa said, and it wasn’t entirely a threat. “Seriously. Just calm down. Just talk to her. Adora’s a super cool girl, and it’s been painfully obvious she’s obsessed with you for years, so just trust her.”

 _Just talk to her._ Just talk. They were good at talking. They can talk, right?

Catra remained silent for the rest of the time sitting in the chair, and as time passed, her mind whirled. All focused on a girl with blond hair and eyes deeper than a stormy ocean.

The haircut was over soon. As it turned out, Netossa was actually pretty good at what she was doing, and Catra had to take a minute and look at herself in the mirror. Scars on the side of her face were still healing but looked way better than before. And her hair…

“So much of it was burnt that I had to cut the back pretty short,” Netossa apologized, brushing her pants off. “But I think it looks nice, if I do say so myself.”

After closing the photo album she’d been looking through, Spinerella agreed with a charming smile. “Adora will like it.”

Of course, Catra’s face turned bright red. No one needs to know about her and Adora, and the thought of people knowing about this particular vulnerability was almost mortifying. Her whole life, she wanted to be strong and unstoppable and immune to those types of weaknesses.

Love. But it wasn’t really a weakness, was it?

And if…getting married was something that they wanted, sooner or later people would find out about their relationship. It can’t be a secret forever.

Catra sighed and looked at herself in the mirror again. This person was someone that Adora loved. She had to trust that.

“Thanks.” Catra looked at the two princesses, swallowing her doubts down. “I…appreciate you not hating me. I should go now, though.”

“Are you going down to find her?”

“No. She’ll be back later. I’m going to…find something else to do with myself.”

“Well okay,” Netossa crossed her arms, “but if you ever find yourself needing to punch your feelings out, we can always have a rematch.”

Punching her feelings out, huh? That wasn’t a horrible idea.

Catra waved goodbye, actually kind of glad she visited, and met her guard outside the princess’s wing. If she wasn’t going to rely on Adora for entertainment, she had to find something else to fill her time. There had to be something.

Adora got back around dinnertime. Her legs were tired from running around with her friends all day, and stomach full of street vendor foods, and she was pretty sure there was confetti in her shoes—but what a party. So many people, so much noise. So much happiness.

Glimmer teleported them back into the castle to avoid walking up stairs after eating so much.

“I think I’m dying.” Bow waddled dramatically, hands on his abdomen. “If you cut me, I think I would bleed custard.”

“That’s a _good thing_ , Bow,” Glimmer encouraged, holding her own stomach too. “I think our challenge is going to be getting all the confetti out of our hair, though.”

They reached Adora’s room, and Adora’s chest did an excited flutter at the thought of seeing Catra again. Had she been waiting in the room? What had she been doing all day? The festival was fun, but Adora couldn’t help but think it would’ve been more fun if her partner had been there.

To her surprise, the bedroom was empty. No Catra, and everything was as it was when she’d left that morning. Almost immediately, her thoughts jumped to the worst possible scenario.

“Where’s Catra?” Bow yawned. “I kinda thought she’d be here.”

“Did she run away?” Glimmer didn’t sound quite as concerned, but this question was the one on Adora’s mind.

_What if she ran? What if she left me? What if--?_

“Oh look.” Bow had gone over to the bed and picked something off the pillow. A piece of paper folded in half.

Adora took the paper and opened it.

“Nerd.”

That’s all it said.

She closed the paper and sighed in relief. “She’s fine. Probably just in her own room.” _Stupid Catra, scaring me like that._ “I should see how she’s doing.”

The other two had sat on the poufs, Bow working a brush through Glimmer’s hair and helping her pick out bits of confetti. It was a bit of an endearing sight, and Adora felt that happiness for a moment of being back with her friends.

She had everything she wanted. And Catra, a few rooms over, was probably waiting for her to get back. What more could she need out of life?

“I’ll be back guys.” Adora, as light as a feather, left the room to find the last piece of her puzzle.

Thank the stars, Catra’s guard was standing outside of the closed room door, meaning she was inside. The guard noticed Adora almost immediately, and straightened her staff.

“Welcome back,” the guard said. “Enjoying yule so far?”

“I am, thank you. Is Catra in?”

“She is.” They did a small bow and knocked on the door twice before opening it for Adora.

Catra’s room was much more comfortable without the invisible barrier trapping her inside. The bed was empty, though the dressers across from it were thrown open. _Where was she?_

The bay window in the room showed a wonderful view of the city at dark. The nook underneath it, covered in pillows and throw blankets, looked comfortable enough to sleep, in too. Admittedly she’d hoped they’d just share a bedroom when they got back, but it didn’t matter.

Adora didn’t even realize there was the sound of running water from the bathroom until a squeaking faucet disrupted her attention. Then a rustle from behind the bathroom door, and it opened.

When she saw Adora just standing in the middle of the room, Catra nearly jumped straight out of her pajamas.

“Adora!” Her face immediately split into a sharp-tooth grin. “They let you into my room, but I can’t go into yours, huh?”

Her fur was still damp, but Adora immediately pulled her into the tightest hug she could without breaking bones. _I missed you_. She buried her face into Catra’s hair—

Catra’s hair?

“What happened??” Adora pulled back immediately, hands on the other girl’s head, scrabbling frantically at the short cut. “Did you get your hair caught in something?? Are you okay?”

“Wow, Adora, way to have faith in me. You can at least _pretend_ it looks good.” Catra dodged the panicked hands. “I let Netossa chop it off. It was all burnt anyways.”

She let--?

For some reason that Adora couldn’t place, this…made her heart feel all fuzzy. Whose idea was it? She actually let someone touch her hair?

“Don’t get all mushy on me now,” Catra blew a raspberry, but it was obvious she was as just as glad to see Adora as Adora was to see her. The way that she looked at her felt so much like a warm drink of hot chocolate.

Luckily, Catra stepped back into the embrace. She’d begun purring gently and closed her eyes when Adora brought their foreheads together. The day must have gone well for her; she seemed relaxed and content and not quite as stressed as usual.

Being apart the entire day after only getting her back for a few hours was…oddly difficult for Adora. It felt like one of her arms were missing. She’d had fun, but her heart really did belong with Catra.

 _I still can’t believe she let Netossa cut her hair. Did she go willingly?_ The thought was amusing.

Eventually, they broke apart long enough to go lay under the bay window together. It was just as cozy as it looked, and the starless sky yawned before them.

Adora was laying on her back, propped on the pillows. Catra curled up between her legs, arms wrapped around her stomach and letting her tail wave lazily in the air. Just the weight of having her close was enough to make Adora sleepy after such a day.

“Adora?”

“Yeah?”

“Would you…” Catra lifted her head and wore a clearly hesitant expression. “Would you consider us to be…girlfriends?”

_I—_

The thought hadn’t really crossed Adora’s mind until then? Her brows knit just a little. The term was familiar. Yes, she knew what it was. The dots hadn’t quite connected until then, though.

Adora pulled the other girl up, so instead of Catra’s head being on her stomach they were now at eye-level. Catra’s knees were bent underneath her thighs, too, and the physical closeness was almost too much.

“Girlfriends, huh?” It was hard for Adora not to laugh. She knew her eyes were crinkling with a smile, though. “What made you think of that?”

“I…”

“‘Just friends’ don’t kiss, do they?”

Catra’s cheeks turned red and she tried to bite back a laugh, too. “No, like... We never talked about it before. Whatever this is. I mean, if you _want_ to talk about it.”

“Catra.” Adora kissed her, realizing that was what she was missing all day. The warmth of their lips together, softness of skin and the tickle of their eyelashes fluttering closed. The weight of Catra as she leaned her entire body into it. “I love being your girlfriend. You said it this morning, I want to spend the rest of our lives together.”

Squirming happily, Catra made a noise that sounded like something between a laugh and a purr. When she reached to put her arms around her girlfriend’s neck, she ended up tugging her hair from its ponytail. It fell around her shoulders.

Catra only pulled away to readjust how she was sitting. The nook wasn’t quite big enough to be sprawled out together, so their legs ended up a little tangled together in the blankets.

“It’s been a long few days without you,” Adora whispered, tilting her chin as Catra dragged her mouth downwards. “When you were taken away the first day we got back, and then the council, and even just today. During yule. I-I’m glad I went, but I wished you were there.”

With her neck exposed, Adora had to swallow chills down as Catra kept her lips pressed to the skin there. It wasn’t entirely an action that wanted more from their intimacy right then; they were both clearly tired and were just trying to be as close as they could before sleep.

And sleep eventually did come.

Lulled by the feeling of their hearts beating together, Adora and Catra finally were able to close their eyes and spend the rest of that night together, wrapped in each other’s arms.


	6. Bittersweet Reunions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A thousand more thank-you's to SimplyAbsolute for being my beta!! And by beta I mean listening to me complain for the last two weeks and doing my editing like an hour before this needed to be published. You're the real real.

The morning came kinder than any of their dreams ever let. When light from the morning moons rose, Adora woke to warmth from every direction. And a bit of a crick in her neck. Did she really sleep half-sitting up?

She was so well-rested though, so there were no true complaints. Especially with Catra sleeping soundly between her legs, face muffled into her shirt. Every so often, the tips of her ears would flick like she was dreaming of something.

“After all these years, you still snore.” Adora ran her thumb across Catra’s freckles, feeling how face her expression was when it was asleep and not scowling.  _ She is really beautiful _ .

The touch woke Catra up. The first thing from her mouth was a loud, drowsy purr, and then her eyes opened.  _ Do I really get to have her for the rest of my life? _

Catra pushed her head into her girlfriend’s stomach sleepily, but wasted no time in making a nuisance of herself. “My morning breath is soo bad. Here, smell it—” Then she lifted up and laughed, trying to kiss Adora straight on her mouth.

Adora dodged. “Gross, Catra. Go brush your teeth.” A kiss landed. “Gross! Go!”

Laughing and still kind of holding onto one another, they scrambled upwards and chased one another into the bathroom. Adora didn’t have a toothbrush in there, of course, so she raspberried at Catra before turning.

“Hey, I’ll meet you at my room when you’re done, okay?”

“Will Glimmer and Bow be there?” Catra stuck her toothbrush in her mouth. “Because they kind of treat your room like  _ their _ room.”

“They’re not all that bad. But yeah, they’re probably going to be there.”

Laughing to herself, Adora left the room and went to go to her own.  _ Catra’s such a dork. I can’t believe I get to have her all to myself for the rest of my life. _

  
  


Of course, all four of them found themselves hanging out in Adora’s room that morning. It just seemed to happen like that, and it didn’t really occur to Adora to kick them out. 

Neither Glimmer nor Bow seemed particularly curious the next morning when they met up with Adora. It wasn’t much of a secret that she hadn’t gone back to her own room last night—they must’ve noticed when they had to leave to go to bed. Luckily—they didn’t say anything.

“Bow, can you please turn that thing off?” Glimmer, who was standing at the mirror of her room, glared at a blipping tracker pad on the floor. It had been going off for a few minutes while its owner—Bow—was busy telling the others all about the archery class he teaches in town.

When his friend mentioned the tracker pad, he finally noticed its noise.

“Probably just a reminder for class today,” he said nonchalantly, and reached over to turn it off. “Anyways, I got a grant from the Etherian Makers Community to expand the custom arrow workshop, and—”

_ Beep beep beep. _

Letting out a frustrated huff, he actually picked up his pad and pulled the notification open. He read for a minute before his eyebrows raised.

“Glimmer!”

The tone of his voice made Glimmer (Adora and Catra too) huddle immediately around the screen.

“It’s a message from Frosta! Maybe I should’ve opened this sooner. It says they’ll—”

“—be here in an hour??” Glimmer read and shot up, nearly tripping backwards on a stray chair. “Why didn’t they tell us sooner they were coming again? They were  _ just _ here a few days ago.”

Excitement and (admittedly) anxiety rose into Adora’s chest. She’d let herself have an easy morning so far, but this… It had been over a year since she’d seen the other princesses of the Rebellion. A month, really, but a year. Familiar guilt resurfaced, but was forced down.

“They were already here?” She took the pad from Bow and reread the message. “When?”

“For the yule feast at the beginning of the week. The day before you…came back. But they caught onto the news now and want to have a reunion brunch, apparently.”

There were no real reasons to be concerned. All of these girls (and Sea Hawk, too) were her friends, and it really did only feel like a few weeks since she’d last seen them. But it had been over a year… Were they mad at her at all?

Sending her girlfriend’s nerves, Catra discreetly leaned her leg against Adora’s, a silent  _ I’m here for you _ . A gesture so kind that Adora had to restrain herself from kissing her right then and there.

“I won’t be able to come,” Bow realized. “I have to be at the archery ground by then. You’ll have to tell everyone I said hi.”

“Of course! They’ll be happy to see you again, Adora.”

All the enthusiasm that Glimmer and Bow shared made her feel both better and even more nervous at the same time. Adora looked over at Catra with a silent question.

“I’ll hang back from this one, too.” The look on Catra’s face made it clear she didn’t want to have brunch in a room full of princesses. “Don’t want to get jumped.”

“You’ll be  _ fine _ .” Glimmer finished her hair and rolled her eyes good-naturedly. It was clear she was given a bit more of an effort to be nice to their fourth wheel. “Scorpia and Entrapta will also be there, if they choose to come to this one.”

Immediately, like she’d been shocked, flew backwards. Her claws scrabbled against the floor as she backup up into the edge of a shelf.

“I don’t—” She tried taking a few deep breaths. “I shouldn’t go. I don’t want to go.” Her ears had flattened.

_ Oh _ . Adora almost forgot. How could she forget about what happened, the issues Catra, Entrapta, and Scorpia had? And Catra looked terrified at the prospect of facing the demons of her past like this. There was a lot of healing she had to do still, but she clearly wanted to do that on her own terms.

Not during a brunch.

“It’s probably going to be loud an annoying,” Adora said making it sound undesirable for a more reserved personality like her girlfriend’s. “If you don’t want to end up with flowers braided into your hair you might actually want to sit this one out.” She laughed.

Gratitude colored Catra’s cheeks. Despite the moment passing just a little more awkward than normal, Glimmer immediately turned the mood back around.

“I  _ love _ brunches! We should take it in the gardens!” She was already busy digging through her closets.

_ I guess we’re doing brunch _ .

Adora and Catra looked at each other, obviously frustrated that they had to take more time apart today. Spending the night before together was wonderful and much needed, but it wasn’t enough.

When Catra was alone yesterday by herself—well not entirely by herself, but still—it was such a leap for her. Adora could see that she was trying so hard and improving, and she’d seemed to genuinely enjoy her time. She was relearning how to be independent without being  _ alone _ , and Adora had to respect that.

However…Adora wanted more than anything to just turn down the brunch and ask Catra to stay in with her. As always, she was overthinking things.

She didn’t want to smother Catra—she knew Catra was more vulnerable now than usual. She didn’t want to run her off. She clearly thought distance was healthy for them, at least a little. This is a good thing.

_ No smothering. _

After a bit of brief goodbyes, Bow left to teach his lessons and Glimmer shooed them from her room to get dressed. After that, Catra and Adora walked back to her room in silence.

“Do you have any plans for today then?” Adora asked, realizing immediately how awkward that question sounded. “Like, tonight?”  _ You sound like an idiot. _

Catra shoved her hands into her pocket. “You’re not going to be gone all day, are you?”

“Well no, but I’m boring. You don’t have to spend every second of the day with me.” This was Adora’s way of inadvertently telling her that she was giving her the space she needed to grow.  _ Don’t allow me to smother you. _

Catra made a face she couldn’t quite identify.

“You can always come to my room and hang out with me while I get ready for brunch, if you want.”

“Um…” She furrowed her brows and looked down at the floor as they walked. “No, that’s okay. You go on without me; I’ll catch up with you later tonight.”

When they got to the door of Adora’s room, she lifted up on her tippy toes to kiss her—once on the lips and again on the cheek.

“Have fun, okay?” Catra turned, putting her hands in her pocket and looking sideway with a smile. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”  _ Was she mad at something? _ “I’ll see you later.”

Adora watched her leave down the hallway in the direction they’d just come. For some reason, the interaction left just a twinge of discomfort in her stomach. Was Catra okay? She wondered. Maybe she was just upset at the thought of seeing Scorpia and Entrapta again… The thought was shaken away.

Catra was her own woman, and she was allowed to be herself without Adora constantly interfering and assuming they had to be joined at the hip.  _ This isn’t our Woods house,  _ she had to remind herself while getting ready for brunch.  _ Things aren’t like that anymore. _

But she wished they were.

The closer to the time of their brunch, the more anxiety Adora felt rising in her stomach. She-Ra had let the Rebellion down, abandoned them. Her legs had jitters like they were filled with bugs.

By some fortune, the brunch setup in the gardens was unoccupied when Adora got there. She didn’t want to sit immediately, so she stood and paced around the table. Not even Glimmer was there yet, and she wasn’t sure if this was a relief to breathe for a moment or if it made her even more nervous.

Only a minute passed, though, before she started hearing a song coming from the outside of the garden room.

“ _ OoooOOOOH~” _

A shanty.

“ _ She’s been just a thought within our heads, a whole year past since I assumed she’s dead—” _

“ _ I don’t think she’d like that song very much.” _

_ “No, I think she will.” _

The doors of the garden burst open, Sea Hawk and Mermista arguing over whether his shanty about Adora dying would make her upset (it kind of did). The second the doors were open, though, everyone stampeded in.

Arms grabbing and hugging Adora, nearly lifting her right out her shoes.

There was Perfuma, covered in flowers and freckles and smelling of soil as usual. Mermista had grown her hair incredible long, braided down her back and rolling her eyes at Sea Hawk—who had grown even better facial hair in this last year. Frosta was several inches taller, too, and had little white flowers tucked in her hair just like Perfuma.

It was all excited chatter and jumping around for several minutes—man, it was overwhelming, but a bit of distraction from the nerves. It lasted a bit before everyone managed to find their seats around the brunch table. Netossa and Spinerella, already having their reunion with Adora in the hallway shortly after her return, just smiled in amusement.

At the end of the line was Glimmer, who’d dressed in a cute tea party outfit. She sat right next to her best friend.

The energy in the garden house was high and buzzing—Adora might’ve been convinced it was her own anxiety, if there wasn’t such excitement and laughter coming from her friends around her. It hardly had the chance to die down before Netossa was counting the people around the table.

“Hey, where’s Catra?” she asked.

The room…got quiet. It made Adora feel like not only did she have to defend her girlfriend’s change, but also defend her own choices without revealing their relationship. To the entire group of princesses (and Sea Hawk). Talking about Catra’s reform with her best friends was one thing, but—

“I think I saw her heading to the dining hall,” Glimmer, the unlikely hero, picked up a sausage with her fork. “She’s kinda weird, but cool.”

_ She’s defending Catra? _

Frosta narrowed her eyes dangerously. “Okay, but we’re talking about the same person, right? The Horde Commander? See, when I first heard—”

“Yeah, did Catra really come back with you?” Perfuma looked nervous, too.

_ Okay, I have to be fair.  _ Adora knew she was nervous, but she had to constantly remind herself how it looked to everyone else. If she could get Bow and Glimmer to see what she saw, she’d be able to get the others to too. Right?

The spotlight was on her, but this time made her much more nervous than the last.

“How much have you all heard?” she asked. The brunch food around the table looked delicious, but she had no appetite.

Mermista took a drink of juice, trying to look uninterested. “Just that you suddenly appeared with Catra after a year. Kinda suspicious, if you ask me.”

“Come on,” Glimmer defended again. “It’s  _ Adora _ . And it’s a long story, she’s probably sick of telling it.”

“No, it’s fine.”  _ If I’m going to get them to understand at least a little, I have to tell the story. For the twentieth time. _ “Thanks though, Glimmer.”

So there around the brunch table, Adora recounted ( _ again _ ) her story of getting trapped in the house in the Whispering Woods with Catra. The princesses had comments (Frosta: “Should have taken her down while you had the chance.”) and more comments (Sea Hawk: “There’s no honor in that fight.”) and questions as well(Perfuma: “So she didn’t even  _ try _ to hurt you?”).

The same topics that had been skipped before were skipped then.

No one needed to know the  _ details _ of the time. And no one needed to know about their relationship, not yet. It didn’t seem like something Catra was inclined to share, and Adora wanted to be respectful about that.

Every so often, Glimmer would sprinkle in a bit of an exaggerated truth, and Adora wasn’t sure if she was grateful or guilty that there were lies being told on her behalf. None of them were exactly  _ lies _ , but the exact  _ truth _ would’ve been harder to understand. Catra tried destroying the world to get back at the girl who broke her heart, only to realize they felt the same way about each other?

They weren’t ready to hear that. So the story went in a different direction.

“So let me get this straight.” Mermista leaned back in her chair, the top of her arm brushing against Sea Hawks. “All this time she was trying to kill us, she was being manipulated and brainwashed by Hordak and Shadow Weaver?”

“…Yeah, pretty much. She’s not a bad person.”

“Okay but she’s tried to kill us  _ multiple times. _ She exploded my ice castle!” Frosta was clearly going to be hard to convince.

“And she poisoned Plumeria.”

“And she burnt down Salineas.”

“Alright, alright.” Glimmer stood from her seat, inhaling deeply like she was preparing to say something she might come to regret. “Yeah, she’s done a lot of really horrible things.  _ Really  _ horrible things. But that was all in the name of the Horde, and the Horde is gone now. Are we seriously going to start distrusting Adora now, after she’s basically come back from the dead?”

Spinerella adjusted her hair. “We’ve run into her this last week, and she’s just a kid. Maybe a little grumpy and a little weird, but she’s not a genuinely bad person.”

_ That was the second time someone has called her girlfriend weird, and Adora was realizing that maybe it was true. _

Weird in a super cute way.

For Glimmer and Spinerella to be defending Catra like this? Honestly, Adora didn’t expect it but she was more grateful than she’d ever think. Especially Glimmer.

“Now if we’re all done doubting Adora’s friendship…” Glimmer sat back down. “I’d really like to eat.”

_ Friendship _ . Adora began eating her brunch, almost feeling entertained about the secret she had and how it was kept from nearly everyone. It wasn’t in her nature to lie by omission, but she kept telling herself Catra was more comfortable like this. It will all be fine.

As they ate, each princess shared what they’ve been up to and how they made it back to Bright Moon on such short notice. As it turned out, Frosta was staying in Plumeria to help Perfuma with her winter solstice harvest (thus explaining the flowers in her hair). She Hawk and Mermista had boated in one the large river running through Etheria instead of taking the sea, so they were able to pick up Perfuma and Frosta along the way. It ended up working out.

“Well thanks for coming all this way to say hi.” Adora picked at her brunch, knowing the guilt was still there. “I’m sure you all are really busy repairing your kingdoms right now.”

“Everyone has been pitching in for the reconstruction efforts. Bright Moon definitely needed to most work, though.”

“So much heavy lifting,” Perfuma looked down at her small arms and laughed. “It would’ve been nice to have She-Ra for that, at least.”

_ It would’ve been nice to have She-Ra. _

The feeling built and built inside of Adora’s chest, shredding her heart while she tried to keep it together.

It would’ve been nice to be there, but she wasn’t. She wasn’t there for any of it. A hot lump began swelling in her throat and didn’t stop swelling until it pushed tears right to the corner of her eyes.  _ Don’t cry, don’t cry. _

If she tried saying anything, she’d definitely cry. If anyone looked at her, she’d cry. If—

“Don’t you dare, Adora.” Glimmer slammed one of her hands on the table and pointed directly at her. “This is not the place to feel bad.”

_ Here it is. _

Adora tried to take a deep breath but it was a trembling sob. “I’m sorry. I let all of you down. I’m so sorry.”

A minute passed awkwardly, while all they heard was choked crying, before it was Perfuma who stood. She gently pushed her chair back in and walked around to where their hero sat hunched. Then she took a flower from her hair to put it behind Adora’s ear.

“Adora, look at me.”

She did, too ashamed to even wipe the snot running under her nose.  _ I’m an idiot, why did I even come here. _

“We’ve all been through so much since when we saw each other last. It’s not fair to treat yourself like this.”

“But I—”

“ _ Ugh _ ,” Mermista rolled her eyes, “stop trying to apologize. You just said you didn’t leave on purpose, so it’s not even something you need to feel bad about?”

Frosta spoke. “We won the war. Isn’t that what matters?”

When Adora blinked her stinging eyes, tears rolled down and dripped on the napkin in her lap. There wasn’t anything she wanted to say, or even  _ could _ say. They were being nicer than she felt she deserved.  _ Catra would understand. I wish Catra was here. _

“No, Adora.” Glimmer used her foot to drag her best friend’s chair to face her. Sparkles rained from her hair when she shook it angrily. “We can’t have you beating yourself up like this. You’ve been withdrawn ever since you got back. Is there anything at all we can say to comfort you?”

Anything? She…didn’t think so. This would take time, she knew it, but it was so real and so painful right then. Adora was no stranger to pain, but the pain of thinking she’d let her friends down was one of the worst she’d felt.

“Okay, well…” Perfuma threw her arms around Adora, squeezing her tight. “I’m sorry you’re feeling so down on yourself, but just know that none of us feel that way towards you.”

“We’re just happy to have you back.” Sea Hawk grabbed Mermista’s arm and threw her into their group hug. “And I definitely did  _ not  _ cry and have to blow my nose into Mermista’s favorite sari when we heard.”

The other princesses followed the dogpile around Adora—Frosta, Netossa, and Spineralla hugged so tight she thought she might burst. More tears fell, but some were of gratitude. Even if she was upset, they weren’t upset at  _ her _ .

“There’s a lot to recover from, and we’ll give you space,” Perfuma’s heavy floral scent was nearly intoxicating, “but we are here for you and we  _ always _ love you. And we’re just so glad you’re alive.”

“You guys…”

Eventually, all of them became blubbering idiots. Except for maybe Frosta, who was still the shortest and had her eyes smashed closed with a hugging arm.  _ My friends _ , she thought. It may take days or weeks (hopefully not months) to get over these feelings that she had, but to know she had the support she needed to heal in the meantime…

Adora missed this more than she knew.

Catra meandered down the long hallways when she left Adora to her devices. She’d tried to act nonchalant about everything, but as soon as she was alone, the confusion washed across her. Adora’s reaction… Her own reaction…

It was fine, this is fine. She had nothing to worry about.

Was Adora pushing her away??

No, that’s unreasonable. She couldn’t think like that. She’d spent the first twenty years of her life being paranoid and self-doubting. Now that she actually had the relationship she’d dreamed of, she couldn’t just drop that trust out the window. Can’t think of it like that.

She kept walking. Where was she even going? The brunch with a room full of princesses sounded much less than ideal, but having to face her old Hordemates just like that? It was going to take longer than just a month to know what to say to them.

How to say sorry for how horribly she treated them. It was hard imagining their reactions, but soon, their familiar voices were nagging at her head, too quiet to hear.

But these voices got louder.

They were coming from the curved hallway ahead of her, the one she was currently walking down. The realization hit her much too late.

_ Shit _ . Catra nearly tripped trying to turn around, but—it was  _ much _ too late. Around the corner they appeared—

Scorpia and Entrapta, looking the same as they always did, laughing enthusiastically about something she couldn’t hear. Too late, too late—

They noticed her.

Catra wasn’t prepared. What was she supposed to say? How was she supposed to act?? There was no justifying her actions from before. All of the terrible things she said to them and did to them. All this time, were they just glad she was considered dead?

Every time Adora had talked about feeling guilt over feeling like she’d abandoned her friends….Catra finally understood it. Except she didn’t abandon her friends. She treated them like garbage and tried to kill herself to try and fix the damage she did instead of…anything else.

They saw her. Scorpia and Entrapta stopped dead in their tracks.  _ They must know I’m back, they must’ve heard. _ Well, they saw her, that was for certain. Scorpia’s eyes were wide and Entrapta had immediately flipped her helmet down to hide her face.

_ What do I do, what do I say--? _

_ This is my job to fix it. _

Catra, trying not to shake, hesitantly took a few steps closer to them until she was ten feet away. From there, she could see a device in Entrapta’s hands with wires and dials sticking out. Like always, she had no idea what it was, but her nerves made it hard to care.

“Are you…” Catra cleared her throat. She wasn’t able to look them in the eyes. “Are you guys heading to the princess breakfast?”

Scorpia flicked her eyes downwards. “Nah, it’s not really our thing.”

An awkward silence followed.  _ What do I say?? _ During this period, Entrapta began fiddling with the device in her hands.

“…What are you making?”

Entrapta lifted her head and with it, her helmet. “You’re interested?”

“Yes?”

“Well I’m glad you asked!!” Somehow the awkward tension just broke, and Entrapta closed the distance in excitement. She used her hair to swing around and hold the device close to the other girl’s face.

Catra glanced up at Scorpia during this, noticing she was still somewhat frozen, but forced her attention back to Entrapta and the explanation she was about to launch.

“Well see, ever since the First One’s tech stopped working, magic has been flowing through Etheria at much higher rates.” Entrapta bounded on her hair while she spoke. “Since we can’t rely on the First Ones to power all my tech anymore, I’ve been working on ways to use Etheria’s natural magic in a similar way!!”

None of this really made sense to Catra, but she tried following along.

“So Scorpia and I—” Entrapta waved back at the third girl, who waved with a claw, “—have been going around to different parts of Etheria to measure and take readings of this magic in hopes we can harness it in an even  _ bigger _ way than the First One’s tech we use to use!”

Catra watched as the tech princess pressed a few buttons on the device she held, lighting a screen up. Then Entrapta held it up again.

“This device takes the readings I need and sends them back live-time to my castle in Dryl! Queen Angella gave me special permission to set it up by the Moonstone.” She squealed. “I can’t  _ wait _ to see what kind of magical energy we could see directly from a runestone.”

Without much warning at all, she bounced upwards and began marching back down the hall in the way they were originally walking, toward the skybridge to the Moonstone. Catra had two choices, either to just keep walking or to follow.  _ This is the effort I need to give _ , she kept reminding herself.

Catra followed Entrapta, knowing Scorpia was following silently behind.

Had Scorpia ever been quiet? She hadn’t really said much or even tried hugging, both of which was abnormal for her. This was the girl who Catra owed her biggest apology to, but the words “I’m sorry” would sound so flat coming from her. They couldn’t even cover the feelings of remorse she had.

So they just walked in silence.

She’d never been on the skybridge between the castle and the moonstone before. The height was  _ terrifying _ —and she’d never been particularly scared of heights. At least the platform where they actual runestone floated was big enough to not be able to see over the edge unless you were purposefully looking down.

While Entrapta was busy fiddling with her device, Catra and Scorpia stood awkwardly to one side. Scorpia’s facial expressions kept changing, a clear reminder of her inability to keep a poker face. She wore her emotions on her sleeves.

Catra felt responsible when the expression turned upset.

“So, where are you going to go after Bright Moon?” she asked, trying to make conversation.

Scorpia answered, “We’re almost done. Tomorrow we’re off to Plumeria and then the last one…the Black Garnet.” Her expression changed once more, and she was clearly thinking what Catra was.

The Black Garnet. The Fright Zone.

“No one is there anymore after the First One’s tech powered off. So it’ll be—”

“Scorpia.” Catra’s voice cracked. “How could you go back? After everything that happened with… After everything I did to you…” She took a painful breath. “Guys, I’m really—I’m really sorry. I can never m—”

Not even a millisecond warning, Scorpia scooped Catra up in a hug so crushing her claws might’ve broken some of Catra’s bones—but she didn’t care.

She didn’t deserve forgiveness.

“I know you’ve got a thing about personal space,” Scorpia kept hugging, “but I’m politely disregarding that.”

“…Scorpia…” Even though Catra couldn’t hug back, she hoped that her tone of voice conveyed everything she couldn’t form into words. Hot tears pricked at the corner of her eyes. “I’m  _ so…”  _ She couldn’t finish.

“It’s been a year. Lots has changed since you left.” Scorpia lessened her grip, easing Catra down and patting her shoulders (which felt bruised). Her expression was back to jovial, like a weight lifted from her own back. “And boy did we  _ freak out _ when we heard you weren’t dead! And that you were with Adora the whole time?”

To be honest with herself, Catra half-expected Scorpia to be jealous at all that. Even though her old friend didn’t quite know their real relationship status, her crush on Catra was not much of a secret.

While Entrapta tinkered, Scorpia kept the conversation going, a nice difference from her silent treatment a bit ago. “So you and Adora aren’t trying to kill each other anymore, is that right?”

Catra unintentionally had a flashback to the night they spent together right before escaping their Woods house. How soft Adora’s skin felt underneath her mouth. “Yeah, no, we’re good now.”

“And you’re okay? Those are some pretty gnarly scars you’ve got.” After saying that, Scorpia winced like she was expecting to get yelled at.

More guilt. Catra sighed and sat down on the cold marble, watching Entrapta. “I’m fine. It’s weird being here in Bright Moon.”

“Tell me about it. I’ve accidentally broken  _ so much _ property here. So much.” Scorpia looked haunted. “How long are you staying here for? What’s the plan?”

Plan? Catra didn’t really have much of a plan other than staying with Adora. That was her plan. And maybe…maybe she owed Scorpia enough to tell her the truth. The  _ whole  _ truth. She must have had a look on her face, because Scorpia sat down with her.

_ I guess I’m telling them. _

So she did. She told them. About her and Adora, about how all of that shaped the last several years of life. Everything came down to that. Everything. But now they were there and things were…okay?

Scorpia reacted similar to how she expected. Looked a little jealous at first, but Scorpia being Scorpia, changed quickly to supportive.

“We’ll come and visit you then,” she promised, knowing immediately that Catra’s plan was to stay in Bright Moon with Adora. “Even if the Fright Zone is kind of far away.”

Catra couldn’t look her in the eyes but still felt relieved she was able to tell someone. “So you really are going back, huh? After everything.”

“Well, it’s my kingdom, even if I have to build it up from scratch. That’s my home. I have to start somewhere, right?”

“…You’re a better leader than I ever was.” Catra fell quiet for a moment.

Then Scorpia broke that silence. “Does she make you happy? Adora?”

“Well, yeah. Of course.” What else could Catra say? She was prepared to spend her life at Adora’s side. That’s the way she wanted things.

For the next few minutes, they just sat there watching Entrapta work. When the device was finally set up and connected, Entrapta went over to them and brushed her hands off on her overalls.

“Alright then! Two more to go after this! How exciting,” she squealed a little to herself, did a twirl, and waited for the other two girls to stand up before they began walking back.

The walk back was much better than the walk there. It felt almost like the old times when they were a team, but much better than the old times. Clearly.

Entrapta was fascinated by the time Catra had spent in the Whispering Woods, especially the “time bubble” part of it, so Catra indulged all of her questions.

Just like the old times but better. Much better. For the first time in a long time, Catra remembered what it was like to have friends.

Later on in the afternoon, Catra was in her room, sorting through piles of clothes on her bed. None of the clothes were hers, but they were a gift from the Queen since she didn’t own anything. None of it was quite  _ her _ , but she knew she had to be grateful.

Some time before dinner, there was a knock on the door. Then it opened.

“Adora.” Catra put the clothes in her hand down and nearly ran over, scooping her girlfriend up in her arms.

Adora held her back. “Hey, I’m sorry for—”

“Apologizing is dumb, don’t do it. But hey, I need to ask you something.”

She pulled back, looking puzzled. “Yeah, okay.”

“Earlier today before you left for the brunch, you seemed like you didn’t want to hang out later.”

“Well no, I—”

“Shut up, I’m trying to say something.” To soften her teasing remark, Catra kissed her girlfriend and ran her thumb across her cheekbone. “I thought for a bit that maybe you were getting sick of me. That now you’re back home you realized that you don’t need me in your life.”

Adora looked  _ horrified _ , but when she tried to say something, Catra put her hand over her mouth.

“I’m trying to tell you that I was being stupid.” She lifted her hand.

Adora’s eyes glistened, maybe not from tears but from some kind of other emotion? Love? That’s dumb. She made a soft  _ aww _ noise. “Okay but I was worried that I was being too clingy and smothering. Because I know you hate that, and I thought—”

Again, Catra shut her up with a kiss. Her insides felt so much lighter than they had this morning; maybe it was from being able to tell her secret, or reconnecting with Scorpia and Entrapta, or having her apology accepted like she thought it wouldn’t ever.

The kiss turned sweeter. “We’re really stupid,” Catra purred, holding onto Adora’s hands with her own. “And here I was thinking you were the only one.”

“Rude!” Adora laughed, snorting in the cute way she did.

_ I love her so much. I’m so in love. _ Catra wanted to be with her for the rest of her life.  She was going to.

“Can we go back to your room?” Catra held her girlfriend’s hands to her face. “I don’t like it in mine.”

“Why don’t we just  _ both _ stay in my room? It feels weird that we’re in separate ones anyways.”

_ I’m so in love. _

“Let’s go then. I’ve got some plans for today.”

Adora lifted one of her eyebrows, the rosiness in her cheeks showing she knew what that meant. “Are we going to be late for dinner?”

“They won’t miss us.”

Holding tight to one another’s hands, they ditched Catra’s laundry project and ran to Adora’s room.  _ Their  _ room.

They closed the door to the room behind them, laughing and stumbling across the carpet. This was the plan, Catra thought. To spend the rest of her lift with Adora and rebuild everything she’d hurt in her life.

But first, there were things she had to attend to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thought about adding spice into the end of this chapter but nah. Use y'alls imaginations.


	7. Time of Giving

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Has it been six months? I'm not sure if I should be thanking or apologizing, or both.  
> But whoever is still here, I am sending yall so many tight virtual hugs.  
> This all being said, I am doing my best editing better and keeping track of continuity, but please lower your expectations just a wee bit. This is not so much a center focus of my life anymore so it may not be as coherent as it was before. At any rate, I hope you guys enjoy!

_Would anyone judge me if I just stayed here forever?_

Shapes from the crystalline ceiling seemed to move as the moonrise began creeping into the windows of Adora’s room. Despite the outside appearing overcast and bitterly cold, magic kept the inside toasty warm.

Catra was in the bed, covers pulled up to her waist and watching the way each of the shadows moved. The morning was quiet and lazy. Back in the Fright Zone, the soldiers worked regardless of the weather, so this was a change. Being able to relax, to enjoy the colors and sights.

Too much seemed to have happened in the last few weeks. Too much.

Catra glanced down at her unclothed upper body, which was exposed to the air. _Adora_. She had a library of amazing memories with her, and last night just added to that collection. Every touch and word repeated through her mind, over and over until she could feel it on her fingers still.

While she enjoyed the recent memories, the shower ran in their bathroom along with some humming from Adora. That girl was so much more of a morning person than Catra was, but that bothered neither of them. Long mornings just meant more time together—then and for the rest of their lives.

Catra was fine just dozing in bed for as long as she could.

Unfortunately, this peace ended abruptly with a _POOF_.

“Hey, if you’re awake, we should totally catch breakfast in town,” Glimmer’s voice succeeded the poof of her entry. “Adora?” When she turned to look at the bed for her friend, she had to do a double take. “Ad--?”

A split-second of shock and horror didn’t give Catra enough time to hide. There she was, clearly nude with her hands tucked comfortably under her head, in a bed that wasn’t hers.

It took Glimmer too long to realize.

Adora’s room, Adora’s bed, _Catra_ nude.

“You’re not—” She immediately slapped her hands over her eyes.

“Nope.” Catra knew there was no hiding from this. It was far too late to cover up. The initial surprise turned almost immediately into humor. _Adora is going to be mortified._

“Sorry, I didn’t…”

Glimmer stopped again. She lowered her hands, eyes wide but not looking at the bed. She seemed to have heard the shower running. Puzzle pieces clicked in her head completely. Realizing.

Her mouth popped open.

“You—”

“Yup.”

“And you’re—”

“Naked. You’re observant.” Catra was trying not to point and laugh. The damage was done. This may be something she could use to tease her later for, too.

“Oh.”

“Uh-huh.”

Glimmer put one of her hands on her forehead. “ _Oooooooooohhhhh.”_

Silence for a second.

In the bathroom, the shower noise died off and Adora continued to hum as she assumedly was getting dressed.

Why on Etheria was Glimmer still standing there in the room? Anyone in their right mind would’ve probably left right away after walking in on someone else naked in their best friend’s bed, but clearly she wasn’t one of them.

 _Are you going to leave??_ The princess seemed too frozen in shock.

Neither of them said anything until the bathroom door opened. Adora strolled out, a towel wrapped around her and a toothbrush in her hand.

“That spot on my thigh is seriously bruising.” Adora rubbed her eyes and stuck the toothbrush in her mouth. “Maybe we should tr—”

She stopped. In front of Glimmer. Realized Glimmer was in fact _there_ and not an illusion. Then she looked at Catra on her bed, who waved.

For a second too long, the three of them stared at each other. At some point, Adora’s toothbrush fell out of her mouth.

“Just to be clear,” Catra twirled the end of her hair, “this is _exactly_ what it looks like.”

“ _Catra!!”_

Without saying anything, Glimmer seemed to unfreeze and just vanished in a puff of purple.

The whole interaction took maybe two minutes. One second, Glimmer’s inability to knock disrupted Catra’s peaceful morning. The next, she was gone again. Just like that.

Catra started laughing immediately. “Serves her right!” She nearly rolled off the bed, hands to her stomach. “Does anyone in this kingdom know how to knock?”

“Oooh my god I can’t believe.” The red blush of embarrassment shone through the cracks of Adora’s fingers as she hid her face. “You didn’t even try to cover yourself up, Catra??”

“She burst in here, I didn’t have any time to! And then after that, there wasn’t much point.” There was so much to laugh about, and Catra enjoyed every second of her girlfriend’s horrified groaning. “That basically assured no one will bother us today. Why don’t you come back over here?”

The teasing tone in her voice made Adora peer through the cracks of her hands. The embarrassed blush turned into a different kind of pink. Then she lowered them with an exasperated smile. “She might never speak to you again. You’re such a dork.”

 _Yeah, but you love it._ They both loved it. Catra wriggled excitedly under the blankets as Adora walked over and plopped herself on top of her. Strand of wet blond hair fell around their shoulders.

“I thought you wanted to keep us a secret?” Adora’s blue eyes sparkled.

“Well, for your sake, sure.” Even though she was being flattened by the other girl’s muscle mass, Catra snuck her arms upwards and played her fingers between Adora’s shoulders. “Your kingdom loves and respects you. I didn’t want to put any of that on the line by them finding out you’re sharing your life with someone like…me.”

This seemed to be a more-or-less unspoken assumption about what would follow if anyone found out about their relationship. Everyone there could insist they didn’t think that way of her anymore, but the past couldn’t just be erased.

What if people started treating Adora different if they knew she was… _mingling_ with a former enemy?

“Stop thinking all those negative thoughts.” Adora tapped her hand against her girlfriend’s forehead. “I thought we were hiding it because you genuinely didn’t want people knowing. Don’t worry about me. They’d find out _eventually_.”

A purr rumbled from Catra’s throat, and she pressed their foreheads together. “Should I apologize for laughing at what just happened?”

“No, it’s kind of funny.”

“She’s probably telling Bow right now. I’ll bet my pants the whole city will know by the end of the day.”

“You’re not wearing pants,” Adora pointed out, “but if you were, I’d take that bet.”

They laid together for a minute, laughing off the last bit of humor from the situation. Clean smells of shampoo and fluffy towel wafted from Adora, tempting Catra to continue where they’d left off last night.

However, it was just nice being together there. After playing with the fuzz on the other girl’s chest for a while, Adora rested her chin on her arm.

“Tomorrow is the last day of the Yule celebrations. I know you didn’t really want to go with us when we went a few days ago, but I kind of want to show you around today.” It was clear by the way that she spoke she was trying to respect the other girl’s space while still looking hopeful she’ll say yes.

How could anyone ever say no to that face?

Catra sighed dramatically but ended up bumping her forehead to her girlfriend’s shoulder. “Of course I’ll go with you. Are we taking your dumb friends?”

“After the way that Glimmer reacted, I don’t know if they’ll want to.”

For obvious reasons, Catra was having a _really_ hard time not laughing again. It was so ridiculous—being caught in the way they were, after only a week of trying to keep it secret. The whole thing was just so ridiculous. If anyone had asked her if this is how she’d expected things to go, it would’ve been a “no.”

“Is it bad that I’m relieved she found out?” Adora stood from the bed and stretched. “I hate keeping secrets from them.”

Honestly, Catra agreed. It wasn’t that she cared about withholding information from other people, but it was driving her crazy not being able to show Adora the affection she wanted. _Whenever_ she wanted. However she wanted.

“I don’t have clothes here. Isn’t it cold outside?” Catra stood from their bed as well, letting the blankets fall uneventfully. The goosebumps on her bare skin told her yes. “I’ve got some in that other room, but they were there before. It feels weird to wear them.”

“They’re just clothes.”

At the wardrobe, Adora dropped her towel and opened the doors. She didn’t spend long digging before pulling out some clothes and throwing them behind her to the bed.

“Here,” she said to Catra. “These should fit you alright. Since you can’t exactly walk to your room for your own clothes.”

“I mean, I _could_.” Catra cackled to herself. “Is public nudity not allowed in Bright Moon?”

“Just put the clothes on, Catra.” Adora looked over her shoulder at her girlfriend fondly. “Later today we’ll move the stuff from your room to this one, okay?”

Catra thought back at the night before, leaving the room given to her to join Adora in hers. _Their_ room. The aesthetic wasn’t quite Catra’s style at all, but as long as they were together, she didn’t really mind.

Looking at all the sparkles and drapery, you wouldn’t even think Catra existed there. But then…she didn’t quite exist, did she? She didn’t teach archery like Bow or attend magic classes in Mystacor like Glimmer. She wasn’t a hero like Adora.

Maybe one of these days she should figure out who _she_ is. The thought was daunting for Catra, having to reinvent herself.

“You alright?” Adora, snapping a belt into her trousers, had on a slight concerned look.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” _No point in thinking about it now_.

After dressing in the borrowed clothes, Catra threw on a scarf and headed out of their room.

“Let’s get your friends, too. They’ll want to come. At least offer, you know.”

“Really?” Adora almost looked like she would cry.

“Don’t make a big deal out of it, sheesh. They’ll probably find us there anyways. No doubt they’ll have _questions_.”

Ugh. Questions. It wasn’t as though Catra was looking forward to answering these questions, she honestly just wanted to get it over with. And making Glimmer uncomfortable was _very_ fun. Payback for all the times she had blasted her in the face with sparkles.

There was Catra’s customary guard outside of the room, waiting, but when she saw that she was accompanied by a princess, she left them to their own devices. _Now for finding the others._

Fortunately, the two girls didn’t have to go far down the hallway before running into a familiar face.

Upon rounding the first corner to the princess’s room, they immediately saw Bow. He was propped up against the wall next to Glimmer’s door, fiddling on his tech pad. When he heard footsteps approaching, he looked.

“Oh hey, guys!” His smile lit up. “What are you up to?”

 _He’s acting pretty nonchalant, if Glimmer had told him what she found out._ Catra opted not to speak at all, and instead let the other girl.

“We’re heading off into town so we can catch the tail end of the festival today,” Adora explained. “Do you and Glimmer want to come?”

“I’m not sure.” Bow cast an interesting sideways glance in the direction of the door. “Glimmer’s kind of acting weird this morning, I don’t know if she’ll be interested. But I’ll ask her?” He had an interesting look on his face, but it was more curious than anything.

_So maybe Glimmer didn’t tell him??_

With the way that Catra met her girlfriend’s eyes discreetly, they both seemed to be thinking the same thing.

“And also my dads are here at Bright Moon for the morning, so I’ll be catching up with them.” Bow winced at a crashing sound coming from the room. “I’ll see if she’ll want to meet up with you for lunch. I have no idea what’s going on with her.”

 _Well, we know._ _She saw me naked; that would probably freak anyone out._

“That’s okay, then,” Adora stepped her heel onto her girlfriend’s shoe to keep her from laughing. “We’ll probably see you later.”

“Have fun!” Bow waved at them as they passed him to continue down the hallway. “It’s nice seeing you, Catra!”

 _Hm?_ They saw them every day, why would he go out of his way to be nice? Unless it was an act?

“Don’t think too much into it.” Adora brushed the back of her hand against her girlfriend’s. “Whether he does or doesn’t know, everyone can see how much you mean to me. They’re just making an effort.”

 _It’s weird_. It didn’t matter how much time would pass, Catra wasn’t sure if she’d ever get used to people being that kind of friendly. _Overly_ friendly. The thought of friendships made her wonder where her old squad was, if they were there in Bright Moon.

That thought was too much to deal with, so she shoved it far away. It was more fun to think about the relationship being on the cusp of public news.

How would everyone act if they knew about it? It would spread like wildfire once it got out, she was certain. Would they treat her any different? Would they treat _Adora_ any different?

As much as she wanted, Catra withheld taking hold of Adora as they walked. Just in case.

The city was cold that day. Clouds stretched across the blue, looking like freshly shorn wool trying to bundle the sky up against the weather. It wasn’t actively snowing then, but it probably would soon. The walk from the city reminded them of all this, as Glimmer wasn’t there to just teleport them.

Catra pulled her arms into the sleeves of her jacket. “Jeez.” Breath puffed visibly in the air. “If my tail falls off, I’m blaming you.”

“Don’t be dramatic,” Adora tugged on her girlfriend’s tail playfully. “Maybe we can sew a few socks together and make a really _long_ sock for it?”

“There’s nothing that I’d rather do _less_ than that.”

Evidence of the festival appeared before they even got to the main square. Dried holly branches had been strung across rooftops, high over their heads, and smells of fresh baked goods wafted from nearly every house on the block. It felt so different than the Bright Moon Catra had attacked—but then again, she was there now as a citizen and not as a terrorist.

“I wonder if we can find some peach cobbler,” Adora thought to herself, sniffing the air like an animal.

 _She still liked peaches after eating nothing but them for an entire month?_ That girl was a character. Catra shook her head, trying not to smile too widely and blow her tough-guy cover in public.

The city of Bright Moon was unlike the scattering villages Catra had come across in her time traveling the world. By all intents and purposes, it was the capital of Etheria, and the original architect seemed to have this idea come across in its layout. Wide streets running to a single converging point at the city center, alleyways perpendicular to the streets. The tallest of buildings and houses nestled closest to the castle, while the smaller buildings built on the downwards slope to the water. At any given point, they could look over a portion of rooftops to see the city “center” at the bottom of the hill.

“I have to say, it would be hard to get lost here.” Catra had her hands in her coat pockets to keep them warm. “Just the noise itself is a good type of compass.”

It was true; a great amount of commotion rose from the city center; music and laughter and bells ringing guided them right down the street to the festival.

Catra had never been to a party. She wasn’t dumb; she knew _of_ parties, even though they didn’t exist in the Fright Zone. She just never thought she’d be able to attend one, especially as a guest and not tied to a spit.

These thoughts didn’t seem to plague Adora, who continued their conversation. “I find it unusual that Glimmer didn’t immediately tell Bow what she saw. They usually share a single brain.”

“I mean, if she’d visited the room last night, she’d be telling everyone _and_ her therapist.”

“Catra, _shut up_.” Adora’s face was bright cherry red, and it wasn’t because of the cold. “I don’t want to whole world knowing our private business. It’s bad enough that Glimmer found out how she did.” Her expression was so embarrassed that the other girl regretted teasing. “I’d like to keep those moments between us all to myself, you know?”

 _Am I a jerk?_ Guilt made Catra’s chest sink just for a split-second, and she wrapped her tail around Adora’s hips as they walked. “Okay, okay, I get it. What we have is _kinda_ special.”

The other girl looked sideways at her.

“…And it means a lot to me.”

More than Adora would ever know. The fact that they got to have this, to have _each other_ … Meant everything.

So, for now she’ll have to dial her chaotic urges down.

“What do people even do at festivals?” The tip of Catra’s nose was beginning to turn frosty. They were nearly to the entrance of the main market, and her stomach was growling fiercely. “I don’t know if I’m much of a ‘mingling’ kind of person.”

The food smelled so good. She wasn’t sure exactly what was calling out to her, but it reminded her of that first big breakfast she’d had in the castle. Fatty meats and breads and baked fruit. Even the temperature wasn’t distracting her from the smells.

“Why don’t we get breakfast first?”

 _I want to hold her hand._ Catra wondered if now that Glimmer knew, if she could? Could she show signs of affection out in public? Would Adora…want her to?

She reached out just as Adora saw a food stand and bounded towards it. Missed the chance.

“What about this?” Adora ran up to the counter and took a deep breath in. Her ponytail swung. For a second—just for a second—Catra was reminded of the girl she fell in love with so many years ago in the Horde. The gap-tooth grin and the big blue eyes that sparkled with energy from morning to night. Her hands were so small yet gripped so tight when she was holding onto Catra.

It was unusual to think that she had really loved her for that long, but the way that the love squeezed her heart made it certain.

“Whatever has meat in it.” Catra sauntered up next to her girlfriend and put her elbows up on the counter of the food stand. “And a lot of it.”

The gentleman behind the counter had small deer horns sticking out from his greying hair and bits of holly tucked into the front of his shirt. He nodded and turned around to begin working at the grill. Smoke surrounding the stall made Catra’s mouth water even more.

“Could you imagine if we would’ve had actual meat at the house in the Woods?” Propped on her elbows as well, Adora leaned into the other girl’s side. “Instead of just fish?”

They didn’t talk too much about their experience in the Whispering Woods, but Catra felt almost grateful to. “If any animals had wandered into the property line, I could’ve killed them with my bare hands,” she boasted. “We would’ve had plenty meat.”

“I had my sword. You wouldn’t have had to use your hands.”

“That…might have made me a little more attracted to you.” Catra made a face and laughed, trying to imagine her girlfriend using her celestial symbol of peace to hunt food for them. Hilarious and _gross_ , but…hot. “We were fine with just fish.”

Memories floated in and out of her head as they stood and waited. Spending all those days and nights with this girl, in front of a crackling fireplace, under the stars, in the covers. Rediscovering everything that she knew she loved about her, and more. So much more. As happy as she was to be freed from that time period, Catra missed it. It belonged to them.

“You look deep in thought,” Adora teased, kicking some snow up with the heel of her boot. “Is it hunger?”

“Probably.” A bit of sadness hit Catra in the back of her throat.

However, it was easy to shake off when their food was ready. She wasn’t sure exactly what it was, but some sort of barbequed breakfast meat wrapped in bread. _So good_. And easy to eat while they walked around. Adora passed a few coins to the gentleman at the booth and they continued on.

The festival was booming; at that point in the morning, light was at just the right angle to turn the heads of the crowds golden. Music was picking up, too, as musicians had set up at the eastern edge of the market. It wasn’t ridiculously loud, but with the decorations for Yule covering each square inch of the area, it certainly felt like a festival.

Adora and Catra made their way to a bonfire close to the musicians and watched them while eating their breakfast.

 _Do parties like this happen often in Bright Moon?_ Catra wondered. She let her tail wave back and forth to the beat of the music. Crowds weren’t her thing, but this was okay. Fun, even.

“She-Ra?”

A voice from behind them startled both Catra and Adora into looking that direction, and they saw a kid wearing a bright blue coat pointing right at Adora.

“Oh, hi,” Adora answered, holding up her free hand in an awkward greeting. “I’m not technically—”

The kid threw their little arms around Adora, squeezing tight, before letting go and pulling out a She-Ra doll from their pocket.

From a table near the bonfire, an adult (probably the parent) stood. “Don’t bother the princess, okay? And always ask permission before hugging.”

The kid could hardly contain their excitement. They nodded quickly back to the adult and then reached their arms up to Adora.

“Please please please throw me!!”

Adora’s eyebrows furrowed in hesitation. “… _Throw_ you?”

“You’re so strong! She Ra is the strongest!”

“Well, I’m not really She-Ra right now.”

“Yeah you are,” the kid laughed into their hands. “Who else are you?”

 _Man, kids are really weird,_ Catra thought. The interaction was amusing, especially because it seemed like the other girl really didn’t know how to answer.

“I’m Adora,” Adora tried explaining. “I’m only She-Ra sometimes.”

“But you can still throw me.”

“Well, maybe—”

“Please!” The kid reached their arms up again. They probably weren’t even four years old.

The second Adora lifted them up, immediately—her and Catra were surrounded. Kids from every angle, jumping in circles and yelling and raising their arms. _Where did they all come from?_ There must’ve been half a dozen of them, fawning over Adora.

How did they even know that was She-Ra?

“My mom said you were dead,” one kid grabbed onto Adora’s coat and swung downwards. “You don’t _look_ dead.”

“Well _my_ moms said you were captured!”

“Why is your hair so short?” _Made sense, as She-Ra’s hair was three times the length as Adora’s._

Adora was nearly drowning in kids, and she turned her pleading eyes towards Catra.

 _What gave her the right to be so cute surrounded by kids?_ It wasn’t as though she could pull out her sword and become She-Ra, not around kids who could potentially get hurt with the blade.

“She-Ra! She-Ra!” Catra chanted, getting the children riled up around them. Her girlfriend gave her another pleading look as the kids immediately ate up that energy and began jumping and yelling louder. “ _She-Ra! She-Ra!”_

“I’m overpowered,” Adora said dramatically, pretending to sink down into the mass of little arms. “There are too many of them!”

She dropped to her knees. Within half a second, kids wrapped their arms around her neck, hugging and laughing and trying to climb up onto her. In the middle of the people-pile, the first kid was holding tight to Adora and had the She-Ra doll pinned against their arm and Adora.

Two of the closest kids, who were trying to grab onto Adora’s coat, were scooped up and thrown over Adora’s shoulders potato-sack style, and Adora stood to her full height. Everyone was laughing and yelling, the two kids that had been picked up, shrieking with delight.

Since the center of town was picking up traffic as more festivities set up, people were staring and smiling to one another as they saw Adora interacting with the children. Parents around looked mortified that their kids were misbehaving like that, but it was clear that Adora didn’t mind. She was beginning to laugh, swinging the kids around and laughing with them.

 _She is_ very _cute with these kids._ As Catra watched, her heart began growing warmer and warmer until something tickled in her chest. She didn’t know what it was, and she wasn’t sure if she _wanted_ to know. But whatever it was…she was happy.

Adora looked happy, too.

After a few minutes, the parents ended up gathering their children and dragging them away from the girls, apologizing but getting a chuckle out of it anyways.

By that time, Adora’s hair had come out of her ponytail and she looked dazed. Smiling and beautiful, though. _So beautiful_.

“Didn’t know you liked kids that much,” Catra teased, crossing her arms and trying not to look too smitten.

“I mean—they’re fun.” There was something in Adora’s eyes that was hard to describe. Even though her tone was clearly meant to be noncommittal, there might’ve been something else.

When Adora stayed silent for over a minute, Catra took her arm. “Hey, why don’t we go check out the booths?”

“Oh, sure,” Adora blinked a few times, then smiled. “Lead the way.”

As it turned out, there was a lot to do at the Yule festival. Many booths and carts were set up all around the main square and the adjacent streets for people to visit. Most were selling things, such as food, clothing and trinkets. The theme of Yule was clear as well, with bright colors and animal prints and holly leaves strung with red berries.

Even just walking around and looking at the sights was a fun activity, but there did seem to be stuff to do. Wooden tables were set up around the main square that were piled high with craft supplies, with kids and adults alike stringing beads and painting baubles.

“Wow,” Catra couldn’t help but noting. “There’s so much here. Does Bright Moon have festivals like these all the time?”

“Not at all,” Adora answered. She was smoothing her hair into a hat, but not tying it back again. “This is the biggest one I’ve seen. It must be because it’s the first winter after the war’s over.”

 _What a celebration._ That brought back the familiar feeling of guilt. Of course they were celebrating. The Horde was defeated. These people weren’t horrible insurgents. Catra couldn’t believe she’d fought so hard to overtake them for so many years.

If she wasn’t an enemy, what was she?

“No bad thoughts,” Adora scolded, as she tended to whenever she noticed her girlfriend getting solemn. “This is a party. Let’s do something fun together.”

From there, it didn’t really matter exactly what they were doing at the festival. They meandered around, not staying too long at any stall in particular. Most of everything was so new to Catra. She’d only known the Fright Zone styles and customs: dark and gross. Why did people decorate things with berries? Why did it matter what designs were on a mug?

Even though the walk kept them moving, Catra felt her thigh wound react poorly to the cold. It was stiffening unpleasantly, but there was no time to really think about it before familiar faces came into view on the street.

“Adora! Catra!” Bow stuck out like a sore thumb in his…cropped winter coat? He waved his arm to them and jogged in their direction. Following closely behind was Glimmer. “Sorry it took so long to get out here.”

“That’s alright, we were just wandering around. How are your dads?” Adora began chatting lightly with Bow, so Catra hung back.

From behind her friend, Glimmer was looking stiff and uncomfortable. She made eye contact with Catra, who winked, and immediately crossed her arms. Her mortified blush was sparkling. _How long will I be able to use this?_

“Enjoying your day so far?” Catra batted her eyelashes. “Have you eaten breakfast yet?”

A very cautious narrow-eyed look scrunched the other girl’s face. “Yeah, w—”

“Well, we found the best breakfast stall here.” Catra put her elbow on Adora’s shoulder as she kept chatting. “Adora and I were just _famished_ this morning.”

If Glimmer could’ve exploded, she would have. Her mouth dropped open in horror and just as she was about to raise an accusatory finger, Bow joined the conversation.

“Oh right,” he was as innocent as ever, addressing Catra. “You two had a sleepover last night, didn’t you? Did you guys have fun?”

“ _So_ much—”

“OH LOOK, it’s Swift Wind!” Glimmer sprinted away from the group, leaving Bow and Adora looking confused.

It was selfish of her, but Catra was excited to be so close to having their “secret” be out. She missed the days in the Whispering Woods because they could be openly and unashamedly in love with each other.

Her and Adora followed the other two as they spotted Swift Wind behind some nearby vendors. As they half-jogged to keep up with Glimmer’s sprinting, Adora leaned in closer to the other girl.

“Stop teasing her,” she scolded. “I don’t want her to hate us for the rest of our lives.”

“Nah, she would just hate _me_.”

“I don’t want anyone I care about hating each other. Especially if it can be avoided by you behaving less like a child.”

Catra snickered. “But her face when she found out was _priceless._ ”

Just for one second, Adora glared. But then got softer. “Yeah, it was kind of hilarious. But let it go eventually, okay?”

 _Maybe._ If Catra had to be a part of Glimmer’s life forever, she might as well have some fun.

When the four of them got close enough to Swift Wind, they were able to see festive gear draped across his chest and wings. Garlands strung in ropes hooked to a carriage he had just gotten done pulling, creating criss-crosses in the snow behind it. His multicolor mane glistened with frost.

“Swift Wind!” The cry was full of gratitude, as Glimmer had an excuse not to listen to Catra’s teasing anymore.

The steed turned his head. “Glimmer? Adora!” He pranced with excitement, jingling every bell attached to the harness. “I’m so happy you made it out here!” Snow from on top of him rained down.

“Carriage rides?” Adora patted his nose. “You really are enjoying civilian life, huh?”

“Have you ever had a candy apple?” Looking wild in the eye, Swift Wind bent down and stage-whispered, “I’ve had _seven_ today _._ They’re like sugar cubes _combined_ with apples.”

They shook their heads at the sugar-buzzed horse and the kids that visited to pet him. It looked like he’d been out all morning, doing these rides. Where he got the carriage might have been a mystery, but the footprints over it suggested his popularity.

“This is a great way to see more of the festival!” Bow was much too enthusiastic. He had taken Glimmer’s hand in this excitement.

In response, the carriage was pulled a little closer. Swift Wind bowed dramatically, his harness jingling. “I take tips in the form of candy apples.”

Catra looked sideways at Adora, who was laughing. Her eyelashes caught some of the snowflakes that were falling. The cold was also turning her nose pink. All of this—her laughter, the beauty of her girlfriend in the snow—was almost too much for Catra’s heart to handle.

 _Gods_. She was so in love. So much so it hurt. So much.

She climbed in second to last. Her tail brushed across Adora’s cheek in the only bit of affection she could show at that point. No one else saw, but when they settled in, the twinkle of Adora’s eye was all she needed back.

The four of them rode through the streets like that. Swift Wind’s hooves clip-clopped on the stone road, bells jingling and singing to himself. The houses passed had steaming pies set out on their windowsills, children building snowmen on their front porches.

Nearly all the people stopped and waved excitedly. The group waved back. A weird sense of feeling _complete_ tugged at Catra. She was cautiously optimistic, but something about all of this filled her chest up. Every time she caught Adora’s eye, the other girl would smile so sweetly at her.

They rode up and down the streets of Bright Moon, traveling to corners and roads they had never been on before. Of course Catra hadn’t, but it almost seemed like the others hadn’t either. At one point, they found themselves so far from the main square, everything was near silent.

Snow fell, music long gone. The Moonstone wasn’t even visible from that point. How far out _were_ they?

Something became visible a ways out, over some of the roofs. It looked like some sort of wall? Swift Wind must have seen it too, because he discreetly took a different road and began trotting away.

“Was that…?” Catra looked behind them, not feeling as good anymore.

Adora pursed her lips. “I think so. The section of Bright Moon they’re keeping the Horde citizens in.”

Even though Glimmer and Bow didn’t say anything to that, they looked at one another uneasily. Neither of them had much of a say in those types of things, since they weren’t the ex-Horde soldiers in that carriage. They were all heading _away_ from the area, so they didn’t have to think about it. Right?

“Did you hear that Scorpia is planning on rebuilding the Fright Zone?” Catra leaned back in her seat. “Since it’s her kingdom and all.”

“She is?” The surprised look on Adora’s face smoothed. “Good for her. That’s quite the task. Would anyone even be allowed to return though?”

The four of them looked to the back of the sleigh where the wall wasn’t visible anymore. Behind it held an unknown number of prisoners of war. Some Horde soldiers, some Fright Zone citizens. Not all of them were evil. Most were just like them, taught that the world outside were enemies.

That didn’t change much since the war was won, but still. Catra knew their mindset.

“I don’t know,” she answered honestly, and she glanced over at Glimmer. “You’re the princess of this place. Would your mom let them return to the Fright Zone if Scorpia rebuilt it as her kingdom?”

Glimmer’s face nearly answered for her. “I…don’t know. She’s adding on an entire sector of Bright Moon to house them. Reeducate them and so forth. She’s not the kind of queen to just let them go like that.”

 _Reeducate them._ That phrase made Catra’s stomach squirm a little, and not in a good way. “They deserve a choice.” She pressed the side of her leg against Adora’s. “Something that we never had.”

“We’ll fix this.” Such an Adora thing to say. Fixing things that no one asked her to. For the first time in a while, Catra loved her for it.

They’ll fix it together.

Swift Wind took the squad back to the main square. Despite the mood dropping just a little, they felt better back in the festivities.

Familiar scents wafted by, and both Catra and Adora seemed to smell it at the same time.

“Are those baked peaches?” Adora made a hungry noise. “Oh, those smell so good. Maybe we should take a snack break.”

Swift Wind stopped their carriage close to the sweet smells, and he nickered. “If you need any more rides, gang, just yell:” He tilted his head back and yelled at the top of his lungs: “Swift Wind!! And I’ll be there in an instant.”

“Thanks, Swifty. Have fun with the kids.” Adora patted his neck and waved as he trotted away, singing about candy apples.

Snow was really falling hard at that point. Heavy snowflakes followed the four as they searched for peaches for Adora. By the time they found the source, their shoulders and heads were dusted.

Instead of a street vendor, they ended up in a small, bustling café. Warmth poured from the door every time it opened, offering smells and sounds of laughter from inside. Breakfast was fantastic that morning, but there was no way Catra wasn’t going to eat whatever the café was cooking.

They found a table at the far back corner. It looked to be ran by small people that had moss and flowers growing right from their skin. They dashed back and forth, carrying platters of steaming food.

“Peach cobbler!” Adora wrapped her arm around Catra’s. “Could you imagine if we’d had better baking supplies at our house? It would’ve been so much more tolerable.”

 _Our house_. This made Catra’s heart squeeze. Gods, she was going to spend the rest of her life with this person.

“Yeah, it would’ve,” she agreed, clearing her throat.

When the smiling waitstaff came over, the four of them ordered peach cobbler and mugs of butterscotch coco. Maybe they were going to go into sugar comas later that night, but it would’ve been worth it.

The atmosphere (minus the crowds of people) reminded Catra of back in the Whispering Woods. Crackling fireplace, cozy smells, the feeling in her stomach. She watched Adora from the corner of her eye, remembering what it was like to have her for herself.

Adora leaned over and spoke quietly. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Catra whispered back. She made sure the other two weren’t paying attention before leaning close, too. “I just really want to kiss you right now.”

The other girl nearly jumped like she was startled. Her cheeks turned bright red. She couldn’t even say anything. Oh, this made Catra so proud of herself. Who else could make Adora speechless like that? No one. _She_ did that to her. Only her.

Catra grinned and turned her attention back to the group conversation.

Eventually, the waitstaff came back with food and drink. There was no doubt that these cobblers were the source of the incredible smell earlier: sugared bread, steaming cinnamon peaches, topped with a swirl of cream. Compared to the grey ration bars—No, Catra didn’t even want to think about those.

Adora immediately began shoveling the food into her mouth. She made delighted noises and her eyes closed, clearly enjoying herself. The food was good, but Catra enjoyed watching her girlfriend far more.

Seeing the sticky syrup on her lips. A crystal of sugar on her nose.

Catra reached under the table and put her free hand on Adora’s leg. No one could see, but Adora’s eyes flicked over to her. Blushing again.

Catra acted like she hadn’t done anything, taking a sip of her coco.

“When are your dads going back to their place, Bow?” Glimmer was oblivious. She brushed a crumb from her friend’s collar. “Were they not just spending the morning here?”

“They should’ve actually left already. I wish they could’ve stayed for Yule, but Entrapta has been helping them with some of their First One’s technology now that it’s all obsolete. They had to get back.”

Catra’s relationship with the First One’s tech was definitely different than everyone else’s. She’d lived in one of their houses, and had used their tech as weapons, but that was it. She’d never met Bow’s dads, either. She felt a disconnect from their group.

Again, she missed being with Adora in their house, spending time to one another in front of the fireplace. Adora was her whole world, and she missed those moments. Her world was bigger now, but the adjustment was hard.

And Adora’s lips looked sweet.

“How’s your food?” Catra rested her cheek on her hand.

“’S good.” There was a bit of peach on her thumb, and Adora licked it off with a smile. “It makes me miss the endless peaches we had. Maybe we should plant a tree?”

Plant a tree? And watch it grow? Together? Catra’s chest squeezed even more. Her heartbeat was nearly too loud.

“Adora.”

The other girl’s blue eyes were twinkling. “Yeah?”

“Can I talk to you for a sec?” Catra stood up from the chair and took a few steps towards a nearby back hallway. Then she looked over at Glimmer, who was trying to murder her with her expression. “Alone?”

If she knew what Catra was hinting at, Adora didn’t act unusual. She stood, ponytail caught inside of her jacket hood. “Sure. We’ll be right back guys!”

This was the first time in her life that Catra had ever been to that café (and this part of Bright Moon in general). It wasn’t like she knew where she was going.

“Where are we going?” Adora asked when they reached the end of the hallway. There were two wooden doors, both with “employees only” signs. “Have you been here before?”

_Eenie meenie miney—_

Catra picked a door and opened it, shoving them both inside and closing it behind her.

“Catr—?”

Light flicked on. It was just a cleaning supply closet, barely big enough for both of them to not trip over anything. _Perfect._ She took steps towards Adora. They got closer, and then their chests bumped.

The blush to Adora’s cheeks returned, eyes wide. Two steps later, she was backed against the wall.

“I can’t stand not getting you to myself anymore,” Catra whispered. This was the truth. Her breathing was hard and throaty. “I can’t stand not being able to touch you whenever I want.”

Adora made a noise.

 _How am I going to control myself?_ Catra pressed against her girlfriend with more weight, raking her claws the wall on either side of her body.

The noise seemed to make the other girl shiver. Her eyes were nearly glossed over at that point, mouth open and breathing the sweet smell of peach cobbler.

“What’s that look for?” Catra purred. She freed one of her hands from the wall to touch her girlfriend’s face. Run a finger along her temple, her jaw. Grab onto her chin.

“What look?” _Like she was begging_.

The corners of Catra’s mouth lifted. With that, she reached around and grabbed a handful of Adora’s lose hair. She didn’t wait any longer—

They kissed.

It wasn’t a calm, gentle kiss either. There were teeth and gripping hands, and one pressing the other against the back wall so tightly they may as well not be wearing clothes. Muffled moaning. Fingers sneaking up the front of a shirt, pant loops being pulled at.

One loop snapped.

“Catra,” Adora panted, hardly able to get the word out through occupied tongue. “Hey.”

All Catra did in response was growl.

“We should get back.”

The embrace did not last long enough. It took everything in Catra to pull her hands out from inside Adora’s shirt and tug it down for her. Her throat nearly hurt from the restraint—or maybe it was holding in the growling. How her girlfriend looked was priceless, though.

Hat gone, Adora’s hair was bunched up on the side where it had been grabbed. Her jacket was unzipped and twisted to the side, and there was a hot red flush across her cheeks. To someone like Catra, she knew where it had come from, but maybe Glimmer and Bow wouldn’t realize?

No, Glimmer would know. The thought made Catra want to laugh wickedly.

Adora licked her lips and tried to shake the daze. “Do you have my hat?”

No, it had fallen onto the floor, but she picked it up and returned it. Even back up, it was clear her hair had been messed with.

Why did Catra get such pleasure out of doing that? Mussing Adora up just enough to notice, like marking her skin. It was a reminder of their relationship, a token of possession. _You’re mine_. Catra wanted Adora to look in the mirror and see that she looked a little different, and it was because of her.

Catra didn’t bother fixing her own self before opening the door. “Do you think we’ll ever go back to that house?”

The question seemed to startle the other girl. Adora’s brows furrowed, and they began walking back into the bustling café. “I don’t know. I mean, I think I would like to. I haven’t given too much serious thought to it, I don’t think.”

When they got into sight, Glimmer was staring the nastiest daggers. _So she noticed they were gone. Probably figured what they were doing, too._

They sat, but Adora didn’t seem to notice the change in mood. “Would you want to?”

“I think so.” Some hard times had happened there in the Woods, Catra knew. Her recovery from those horrible wounds, the emotional 180 done in just a few weeks. Whiplash. “We can talk about it later if you want.”

The food had nearly gotten cold.

Bow was still chatting about the work his dads were doing with Entrapta, and they enjoyed the rest of the dessert peacefully. After a minute, Glimmer decided to give up imagining what had happened in the closet, she enthused about a pair of gloves she was going to buy for Queen Angella to celebrate Yule.

Yule didn’t even exist to Catra until a few days ago, so she was surprised to find that exchanging gifts was customary. There were a few other traditions that sounded mildly interesting as well. When she looked over at Adora, the other girl seemed somewhat lost in thought.

She didn’t bother, though.

High noon had passed when the group went back outside. Snow was continuing to fall, lighter but windier than before. It made Catra want to tuck her tail up into her pants, but she had too much pride to do that. She’d rather freeze.

Despite being there at the festival for several hours at that point, there was still so much to do and see. Nearly everyone had to stop and say hi to Adora, who was as polite and charming as ever. If it were Catra being bugged like that, she’d get sick of it fast.

The two of them hung back as Glimmer and Bow visited booths and shops, spending coin every so often. Catra admitted to herself that she didn’t think much of money at Bright Moon. In the Horde, she’d had access to a hefty sum that came with her rank, but all that was gone.

Gone with the Horde. She was left with nothing, especially not money. The thought of getting a “normal” job was almost comical.

“Hey Catra!” Adora called from the window of a nearby shop. She was pointing through the glass at a set of painted cat figurines. “They remind me of you!”

Catra was about to say something about how dumb that was, but when she saw how shiny her girlfriend’s eyes were, she stopped. “They’re…cute I guess.” _Was she supposed to buy Adora a gift for the holiday?_

Where would she even start? And what would she buy it with? Maybe it wasn’t on the cards that year. It shouldn’t be another thing she had to worry about. _Money_.

At some point during the group escapade, Glimmer and Bow decided to rest their legs at the farther edge of town. A small park had been set up at the edge of the water reachable from the main road. Though snow hadn’t been shoveled yet, there was a park bench clean enough to pile on.

This view overlooked a section of frozen lake as well as the edge of the Whispering Woods. Whisps of snow danced across the ice nearly like sand dunes, but it was a beautiful sight to see. Music may play on behind them, but there was such peace in that moment.

Catra took Adora’s hand, not caring if anyone saw. Her wounds were really aching, so being able to rest was nice, but it reminded her of what they felt like fresh. How gently she’d been taken care of. How that reminded her so easily of love.

“Isn’t it weird that we’ve only been back for a week?” She leaned back to look up at the sky. Cold flakes tickled her face. “When we were there, it felt like I’d never see the outside world again.”

Like she’d never eat a real meal again, sleep in a real bed again. Wear clothes that didn’t belong to a First One.

Adora seemed to agree. She let out a contented sigh, breath turning to more fog. “I can’t even imagine what would happen if we weren’t able to get out. I would’ve had to get really creative with my cooking.”

“You cook??” Apparently Glimmer had been listening, because she leaned over to stare at her friend. “Like, food?”

“What else, Glimmer?”

“I’ve just…never seen you cook. Or even express any remote interest in it.”

Adora snorted. “You try eating raw fish and see how you like it. Or the same five fruits and vegetables.” She shivered with the memory, but it also made her laugh. She looked over at Catra with amused eyes. “I’m just glad we don’t have to do that anymore.”

 _Me too._ But the memory made Catra painfully nostalgic.

The four of them hung around in the falling snow a little longer. Eventually, the peace began melting a little bit of her ornery heart.

“Glimmer.” She kicked the side of Glimmer’s leg. “I guess I’m sorry for this morning.”

All three of them turned and looked at her in shock. Surprise, the evil ex-Horde officer knew how to apologize.

“What happened this morning?” Bow asked.

Glimmer, Adora and Catra all said, “NOTHING!” at the same time. That made it ten times more suspicious, but it somehow wasn’t questioned farther. The look on Adora’s face, like she was trying not to laugh, made everything worth it, though. Easily.

So what was she going to do about all this?

Another length of time passed before Catra stood. “Hey, I need to run an errand. But…I can’t go without an escort.” _I really don’t want to have to ask either of them, that would be so lame._

“I’ll tag along,” Bow volunteered immediately. “I need to stretch my legs.”

“…Okay. Meet us at the bonfire later?”

When Glimmer and Adora agreed, she did a single finger-gun at the group before leaving.

_I hope this works._

Despite Adora’s curiosity in where her girlfriend went, she had to trust those intentions. The thought of Bow accompanying her girlfriend was much more comforting than a palace guard. Maybe they would even have a chance to bond—but that might be too much to ask.

“It still doesn’t feel real that Catra’s living here in Bright Moon,” Glimmer said, putting out a hand to catch falling snow. “And we’re not, you know, trying to kill her.”

Adora had enough time to register it, especially how fast things seemed to move when they were trapped. “I guess. Things are really different now. She’s seemed…sad for the last few days, though.”

“How can you even tell?”

It was hard to explain to her friends, who haven’t seen Catra’s growth and personality quite like she has. But even joking and teasing, Catra obviously missed the peace of their house in the Whispering Woods. Life in Bright Moon was a huge change from the house, and an even bigger change from the Fright Zone.

She had been so flexible this whole time. Adora might have realized it before, but Catra really did give up everything—multiple times. It all was for Adora.

“I can just tell.” She looked down at her hands. “When we were there in the time bubble, there was a sky full of stars every night. The way that she would look at those stars… I don’t know.”

Her tone must have been melancholy, because Glimmer tutted sympathetically. No one except for the two girls would know exactly what it was like to be stuck there.

“I can’t imagine what it would be like to have stars every night.” As though she was imaging them, Glimmer looked upwards. “The closest we got was seeing them on that projection in Bow’s dad’s library.”

That felt like it was forever ago. A different lifetime, even. Now that she was back in present time, there was no way to ever see real stars again.

Time passed slowly, watching people skate across the ice in front of them. After a bit, they left to go to the bonfire and wait for the others. All the while, Adora’s mind was working, thinking of gifts and ways to make Catra smile.

 _All I want is to make her happy, and for us to be happy together_. That wasn’t too much to ask.

Finding the bonfire wasn’t hard. Not only was there smoke, but jovial music led the way down streets and around shops to the square. This was where her and Catra had very first come, but that was early in the morning. Now, people were everywhere.

It was a party if Adora had ever seen one. Dancing and singing and eating and enough confetti to suit the kingdom of Bright Moon. Almost immediately, people recognized who’d arrived and cheered.

“Princess Glimmer!” they cheered. “Princess She-Ra!”

Glimmer jumped in immediately, laughing and throwing a glitter bomb high above the crowds. When it exploded, glitter and light showered over everyone.

“This is so fun!” she squealed. “We should dance! Or do you want to find the others first? Do you see them?”

Adora scanned her eyes over the partygoers. “I don’t—”

“ _Hey Adora.”_

She nearly jumped out of her boots. It was Catra right behind her, ears flicking in delight at the scare. The shine in her eyes was almost back. _So cute_ , Adora thought.

“That didn’t take too l—oh!”

Catra swept her up in her arms, spinning her around once to the music. Completely out of character, but too happy to fight. Her hands were tight to her girlfriend’s waist. Maybe it was knowing that _everyone_ was looking at them, but Adora’s heart was beating fast in her throat.

“We’re being watched,” she laughed nervously. “You know that?”

Music thrummed all around them; it was a natural instinct to move their bodies together in goofy dancing.

“Yeah I know.” A little purr rumbled from Catra’s throat. Her tail wrapped around the back of her girlfriend’s legs, but not tight enough to trip. “But I’ve been thinking…”

 _Ba-bump._ If Adora hadn’t been nervous before, she was then.

Maybe nervous wasn’t a good word for it. Excited? Anxious? What was Catra going to say? With everyone looking at them, their secret wouldn’t be a secret for much longer. At the edge of the crowd, Glimmer and Bow seemed to be staring wordlessly at the other two as they danced.

Catra slid one of her hands down to grab Adora’s. “So, here’s my train of thought. I didn’t originally want to go public with our relationship and ruin your good image.”

“I’ve told you that was dumb.” This was beginning to make Adora chuckle.

“Right. So… Say I’ve spent the entire day wanting to kiss you. _Hypothetically_.”

Her laughter grew a little more. “You’re saying that awful loud.” _Everyone is going to hear._ Part of her wanted that to be intentional.

“I mean…” Catra ran one of her hands through her short hair. It was almost as though she knew how gorgeous she was, and was trying to flaunt it to the other girl. “We’re definitely _good friends.”_

“ _Catra_ —” Adora put the back of her hand up to her mouth to stop herself from snorting.

“But unfortunately, I’m very attracted to you.”

The people who were dancing around them were watching and listening. Some of them even stopped their dancing to stare. It made Adora’s nerves so much worse; they had an audience, and the way that her girlfriend was looking at her was not secretive at all.

Catra put both of her hands on Adora’s cheeks. “So if you’re okay with being stuck with me forever, then—”

She couldn’t help it.

Adora kissed her. Right there in front of the entire world. Under the snowflakes and confetti and sparks from the bonfire. Everyone around them—it felt like the entire kingdom of Bright Moon.

It was a kiss that marked the beginning of something new. Something worth celebrating. Cold and short and sweet and so spur-of-the-moment she couldn’t regret it.

The kiss lasted a second longer than appropriate before Adora pulled away. “Guess the secret’s out.” She kept her eyes trained to the girl in front of her. “What a way to announce it, hm?”

“I think your stupidity is rubbing off on me.”

Cheering and hollering from the crowd answered the moment. Everyone had noticed. _Everyone_. And they were…cheering?

Somewhere to the side, they heard Bow go, “Oooh that makes so much sense.”

And Glimmer: “I saw her boobs, Bow. I can never unsee that.”

Catra turned to the princess, and in a voice that _everyone_ could hear, said, “I think you’re just jealous that I get more action that you.”

“ _CATRA, I WILL KILL YOU.”_

The girls chased each other around the bonfire, cackling.

 _No taking that back now,_ Adora thought, shaking her head. It hadn’t gone how she imagined, but the reception from everyone else was strangely positive. Citizens were looking in their direction with sappy eyes and hugging their nearby loved ones. What a happy time this was, she thought.

“Hey Bow?”

Bow, with happy tears, wiped his eyes. “I can’t believe I didn’t realize.”

“I’ve got a big favor to ask of you.”

While the two other girls were horsing around, Adora talked to Bow briefly of her idea. It was a lot to ask, and she felt bad for asking her friends to give up the rest of the evening. Despite this, Bow agreed enthusiastically.

Being faced with a moment like this, just to be with the people she cared about in such a real way, Adora felt nothing but gratitude and love. Love for her found family.

After Glimmer and Catra calmed down (Catra laughing hysterically and Glimmer as bright red as a tomato) they all decided to start wrapping their adventure up. They weren’t sure exactly what time it was, and clouds covered the sun, but it must’ve been around mid-afternoon.

The walk back to the castle was longer than the walk out, mostly because Catra kept teasing Glimmer and everyone had to stop while the two tried pummeling one another in a friendly-ish way. Guess there was no avoiding that, Adora figured. Even if it was funny to watch.

The rest of the afternoon was not spent as a whole group. While Glimmer and Bow went off on Adora’s mystery errand, the other two worked to move what little was in Catra’s old room to Adora’s. There wasn’t much, mostly toiletries and unfamiliar clothes.

They made conversation about how odd it was to have a wardrobe after wearing uniforms their whole lives. It _was_ odd. For the first many weeks of living there when she first came to Bright Moon, Adora would wake up every day feeling like she was living in a stranger’s body. She got used to it, though, so it was easy to comfort her girlfriend.

Dinnertime came.

Bow and Glimmer arrived back right as the private dining quarters were set up. It was much more peaceful just the four of them, rather than eating in the dining hall with the rest of the castle. The floor-to-ceiling window offered a view of the moonset.

People in the city below were still celebrating, and probably would be to the wee hours of the morning.

“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m exhausted from today.” Yawning, Bow pointed down to his feet. “I should’ve worn different shoes, because my feet are seriously sore.”

Adora couldn’t help but agree. She was an athletic person, but after walking around in the cold nearly all day, her legs could feel it. From the corner of her eye, she saw Catra rubbing at the center of her right thigh where the worst of her scars were.

 _She must really be hurting,_ Adora thought. Maybe she’ll help massage it later.

After finishing dinner, the four of them stuck around just a little longer to watch the sky completely darken. It reminded her of the little surprise she’d planned for her girlfriend.

“We should be turning in,” she told the others.

They stood.

“We’ll see you tomorrow.” Glimmer and Bow said their goodbyes (Glimmer sticking her tongue out at Catra, who rolled her eyes back).

Not long after, Catra and Adora found themselves alone once more, walking back to their room. _Their_ room. Thoughts swirled around inside of her head, but she forced herself to think of the present.

“Can I ask what you’d gone off to do earlier?” When they were in the bedroom, Adora closed the door behind.

Strings of lights still lit up the edges of the room, so she went to turn those off before beginning to dress for the evening.

“Secret,” Catra responded with a toothy smile, but her expression grew curious. “What are you doing?”

“You’ll see in a minute. Go get ready for bed, okay?”

It wasn’t a huge surprise, but Adora had really wanted to do something special for Catra. She’d seen the swings in mood that day, going from glowing and laughing to a more somber side. There was so much talk of missing their Woods house and their time together…

Adora wouldn’t consider this the Yule present, but she was still happy with herself. She’d shut all the curtained windows, turned off lights, and dragged all their blankets to the center of the room. After that…

“Where did they put it?” she mumbled to herself, opening up the closet to find— “The projector!”

It was big, clunky, and weighed too much, but it was there just like Glimmer and Bow promised. After getting back to the castle, they’d teleported to Bow’s dad’s library to borrow the star projector as Adora had requested.

There was little comparable to the feeling of being together under a massive, twinkling night sky. This would have to do.

Catra came out of the bathroom, damp from a shower, to find the stars again.

The stars… Reaching every corner of their bedroom, against the walls and reflecting on the crystalline pillars. It might not have been the real thing, but when Adora saw the way Catra stared up at them, it was almost better.

Right then, Catra was clean in soft pajamas and her hair messy around eyes the size of dinner plates. A few of the projected stars had landed on her skin like freckles, too, reminding Adora of the first time she realized the extent of her love out in the Whispering Woods.

“Where did…?” The other girl tore her gaze away from the stars to look at Adora. “What is this?” Maybe it was the projection, but her eyes were glistening with what might’ve been tears.

“I borrowed a projector from Bow’s dads. You seemed to miss our time together. Things have changed a lot,” Adora laid down on the floor blankets, patting next to her, “but we can make do with what we have. As long as we’ve got each other, right?”

Catra went to lay down next to Adora, wriggling in between her arm and chest so they fit together perfectly. Every breath she took, Adora could feel the soft feathers of her girlfriend’s hair against her chin.

“Right,” whispered Catra in return.

There may be uncertainty in their future. However, few things would never change. As sure as the sky above them, they’d have each other for the rest of forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (No, this is not the end of the fic, I promise)  
> Also the idea for the star projector was not my idea, so thank you @simplyabsolute for the idea!! Go read her stuff, it's WORTH IT.

**Author's Note:**

> HMU  
> tumblr: https://fruitsand-peachies.tumblr.com/  
> twitter: @andPeachies  
> 


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